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Webster  Family  Library  ot  Veterinary  Medicine 
Cummings  School  ot  v.^-  -^.nn/  w-iicine  at 
Tufts  University 
200  Westboro  Road 


FORTY   YEARS   BEAGLING 
IN    THE    UNITED    STATES 


FORTY  YEARS   BEAGLING 
IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 


BY 


EUGENE    LENTILHON 


MASTER   OF   THE    AWIXA    BEAGLES 


NEW  YORK 
E.    P.   DUTTOlSr   &   COMPANY 

681  Fifth  Avenue 


If 

U^  Copyright,  1921, 

\/yr\i  By  E.  P.  Dutton  &  Company 


All  Rights  Reserved 


PBINTED  IN  THE  UNITED 
STATES  OF  AMERICA 


To 
C.    STALEY   DOUB 

of  Frederick,  Maryland 


nn 


AUTHOR'S    PREFACE 

HE  reader  of  the  following  pages  will  find 
I         that  I  can  lay  no  claim  to  the  authorship 

-■^  of  much  of  the  material  in  them.  In  fact, 
my  chief  aim  in  writing  the  book  has  been  to  pre- 
sent to  the  beaghng  world  a  quantity  of  valuable 
and  interesting  material  taken  from  the  sporting 
papers  of  former  days,  now  long  out  of  print  and 
which  a  few  years  more  would  have  made  entirely 
inaccessible.  Here  will  be  found  presented  the 
ideas  of  those  who  have  gone  before  and  who  made 
beagling  history  in  the  United  States,  and  a  record 
of  what  changes  were  discussed,  considered  neces- 
sary or  made  for  the  benefit  of  the  breed  since 
General  Rowett  first  imported  his  beagles  from 
England.  Moreover,  I  think  I  am  justified  in 
claiming  that  these  opinions  of  the  prominent 
beaglers  and  breeders  are  now  brought  together 
for  the  first  time. 

My  duty  is  then  principally  that  of  a  chronicler 
— not  to  argue  why  certain  men  believed  certain 
things,  nor  why  events  did  or  did  not  happen,  or 
should  or  should  not  have  happened,  but  simply 
to  describe  what  the  records  are  on  the  different 
matters  concerning  the  beagle  from  1884  to  date. 

vii 


viii  Author's  Preface 

No  history  of  the  breed,  whose  origin  is  wrapped 
in  mystery,  is  given,  as  that  ground  has  been  fully 
covered  by  previous  authors  both  in  England  and 
in  the  United  States. 

As  to  assembling  discussions  of  standard,  type, 
training,  breed,  speed,  nose  and  bone  under  differ- 
ent chapters — ^this  has  been  done  as  far  as  possible, 
but  to  do  so  in  its  entirety  would  be  to  lose  the 
advantage  of  chronology. 

A  debt  of  gratitude  is  due  from  me  to  Mr.  C. 
Staley  Doub,  of  Frederick,  Maryland,  through 
whose  courtesy  most  of  the  articles  were  made 
available,  and  to  whom  this  book  is  dedicated. 

Eugene  Lentilhon, 

Master  of  the  Awixa  Beagles. 
Islip,  N.  Y. 
Octo'ber,  1921 


CHAPTER  ^^^ 


CONTENTS 

I.  Ground  Work 1 

II.  Training 20 

III.  Size 39 

IV.  Progeny 56 

V.  Brood    Bitch  and  Puppies 74 

VI.  Speed  Versus  Nose 83 

VII.  Standard  Versus  Judge 119 

VIII.  Judging  Field  Trials 128 

IX.  Bone  in  the  Beagle 139 

X.  Toy  Beagles 154 

XI.  Weight  in   Beagles 161 

XII.  Field  Trial  Beagle  Type 172 

XIII.  Teaching  Young  Hounds  to  Hunt  .      .      .  198 

XIV.  Type 204 

XV.  Advice  to  a  Beginner 213 

XVI.  Beagle   Measurements 225 

XVII.  The  Management  of  Stud  Dogs       .      .      .  253 

XVIII.  Packs 261 

XIX.  Some  Bench  Show  Data 267 

XX.  Judges  and  Judging 274 

XXI.  Cost  of  Beagles 278 

XXII.  Kennel  Hints  and  Remedies       ....  280 

ix 


FORTY   YEARS    BEAGLING 
IN    THE    UNITED    STATES 


For  some  we  loved,  the  loveliest  and  the  best 

That  from  his   Vintage  rolling  Time  hath  prest. 
Have  drunJc  their  Cup  a  Round  or  two  before. 

And  one  by  one  crept  silently  to  rest. 

—The  Rubaiyat. 


FORTY  YEARS  BEAGLING   IN 
THE  UNITED  STATES 

CHAPTER    I 

GKOUND   WORK 

A  LETTER  appears  in  Forest  and  Stream, 
December  13th,  1883,  from  the  pen  of  Mr. 
W.  H.  Ashburner,  suggesting  a  standard 
for  the  formation  of  the  original  beagle  club  in 
the  United  States,  in  which  he  states,  if  beagle 
admirers  want  standards  to  accommodate  certain 
kennels  or  packs,  it  can  be  done  without  the  for- 
mation of  a  club,  simply  by  adopting  its  own.  He 
suggests  that  a  committee  be  appointed  to  draft  a 
standard. 

The  earliest  accounts  of  the  formation  of  the 
first  beagle  club  in  the  United  States,  known  as 
the  "American  English  Beagle  Club,"  brought  out 
much  discussion  as  to  the  use  of  the  word  English. 
We  find  that  the  first  beaglers  to  move  for  a  beagle 
club  were  Messrs.  Ashburner  and  Kreuger,  of 
whom  the  former  became  the  first  president.  Some 
correspondents,    and    evidently    ardent    beaglers. 


Forty  Years  Beagling 


wanted  the  word  American  omitted,  others  wanted 
the  word  English  omitted,  and  the  reasons  given 
for  the  omission  of  the  word  American  was  that 
at  that  time  the  American  beagle  was  a  bench 
legged  hound,  which,  it  was  claimed,  should  be 
severely  let  alone.  Evidently  a  compromise  was 
effected  in  the  formation  of  the  club,  as  both  words 
were  used,  the  word  Enghsh  being  subsequently 
dropped. 

Later  on  the  National  Beagle  Club  was  organ- 
ized and  became  the  parent  organization  in  the 
United  States,  which  position  it  holds  to  this  day. 
The  first  annual  meeting  of  this  club  was  held  at 
the  Quincy  House,  Boston,  Massachusetts,  on  Eri- 
day,  January  2nd,  1891,  and  the  then  president, 
Mr.  O.  W.  Brooking,  addressed  the  members  as 
follows : 

"Gentlemen  of  the  National  Beagle  Club,  it 
should  be  at  this,  our  first  meeting,  the  occasion 
for  a  speech  from  the  president  of  your  club,  but, 
gentlemen,  the  history  of  your  club  speaks  for 
itself.  On  Fast  Day,  last  April,  seven  gentlemen 
met  at  the  press  room  of  the  New  England  Kennel 
Club  Bench  Show  and  started  the  nucleus  of  this 
club.  We  met  again  at  the  Quincy  House  on  May 
3rd  and  organized  the  club.  I  think  I  can  safely 
say  that  this  club  has  advanced  farther  in  a  given 


Ground  Work 


period  than  any  other  club  in  America;  and  I  will 
take  this  opportunity  to  thank  you  one  and  all  for 
your  industry,  patience  and  true  sportsmanship  in 
supporting  the  club  and  your  president,  and  I  feel 
that  the  club  and  its  objects  are  worthy  of  your 
best  efforts.  Several  leading  sporting  journals 
stated  that  the  field  trials  would  be  a  failure,  but 
we  have  proven  them  mistaken,  for  we  held  our 
trials  and  held  them  successfully. 

"We  are  the  live  Beagle  Club  of  the  world.  We 
will  encourage  the  breeding  of  thoroughbred  bea- 
gles in  every  legitimate  way  and  will  not  stop  until 
the  Field  Trial  and  Bench  Show  Beagle  is  perfect. 

"In  a  recent  letter  I  invited  the  old  beagle  club 
to  join  us  and  sincerely  hope  they  will  do  so.  This 
club  was  started  because  beagle  men  could  not  re- 
ceive support  and  encom-agement.  We  have  given 
them  both.  Our  next  effort  will  be  at  bench  shows, 
and  our  prizes  will  consist  of  something  more  tangi- 
ble than  75-cent  dog  collars.  The  history  of  the 
club  is  short,  because  it  is  young,  and  it  is  unneces- 
sary for  me  to  go  into  detail,  for  you  have  read  of 
our  various  movements  through  the  kennel  press 
to  whom  we  extend  our  thanks  for  their  uniform 
courtesy  and  support.  In  conclusion  I  would  ex- 
tend a  cordial  invitation,  not  only  to  every  owner 
of  a  beagle  hound,  but  every  rabbit  hunter  and 


Forty  Years  Beagling 


lover  of  the  sport,  to  join  us  in  keeping  this  club 
at  the  top  where  it  belongs." 

Right  at  the  outset  of  the  game  a  writer  from 
Delaware  City,  Pennsylvania,  who  signs  the  name 
of  "Sedge"  in  the  March  12th,  1885,  issue  of  Forest 
and  St7'eam,  condemns  the  small  or  dwarf  beagle, 
and  a  long  discussion  took  place  between  George 
F.  Reed,  of  Auburn,  New  York  (who  deplored  the 
disappearance  of  game  birds  at  that  time) ;  Mr.  W. 
H.  Ashburner  of  Philadelphia,  Pennsylvania,  who 
defends  the  small  beagle;  "Rusticus";  "Flat"; 
"Lillibulero" ;  a  Mr.  Sloan;  Mr.  Kreuger,  and 
even  at  that  far  back  date  O.  W.  R.  proposes  the 
health  of  the  coming  dog,  the  English  beagle. 

An  interesting  account  of  a  day's  hunting  with 
that  patriarch  of  the  game,  Mr.  Pottinger  Dorsey, 
of  New  Market,  Maryland,  where  sixteen  out  of 
seventeen  rabbits  started  were  killed  by  his  pack, 
and  in  June  of  the  previous  year  (1884)  gives  his 
ideas  of  what  a  hunting  pack  should  be,  as  follows: 
"I  prefer  beagles  of  from  thirteen  to  fourteen 
inches  high  and  say  from  fifteen  to  twenty  pounds 
weight.  Dogs  of  this  size  can  stand  hard  working, 
and  have  stronger  notes,  making  a  much  more 
lively  clash  when  in  full  pursuit  of  their  game,  and, 
moreover,  dogs  of  this  size  can  make  the  rabbit  run 
when  started  and  will  not  give  him  so  much  time 


Ground  Work 


to  back  track  and  bother  the  dogs,  even  in  heavy 
cover.  I  can't  agree  with  some  of  my  brother 
sportsmen  when  they  say,  'the  only  way  to  use  bea- 
gles is  to  shoot  the  rabbits  in  front  of  the  little 
hound.'  I  moreover  say  any  pack  of  beagles  hav- 
ing their  game  always  shot  in  front  of  them  will 
spoil  any  pack  of  dogs  it  is  practiced  over,  they 
will  gradually  lose  their  ambition  and  perseverance, 
and  on  a  bad  loss  of  trail  will  come  in  and  give  up. 
My  mode  of  hunting  is  to  let  the  dogs  run  down 
and  catch  some  of  the  rabbits  on  every  hunt,  and 
sometimes  hunt  without  a  gun,  and  let  the  dogs 
chase  and  catch  their  game  on  fair  footing.  That 
gives  the  dog  perseverance,  and  makes  them  press 
their  game,  looking  for  the  sight  chase  and  close  of 
race. 

"There  is  little  amusement  in  the  chase  if  the 
rabbit  is  not  made  to  run;  that  is  the  fun,  when 
dogs  and  man  are  all  excitement,  and  the  rabbit  is 
sighted  from  cover  by  the  little  hounds,  and  the 
rabbit  gradually  failing  and  the  dogs  well  set  to 
their  work,  and  growing  more  eager  at  the  close  of 
the  chase.  What  amusement  can  there  be  to  only 
make  a  rabbit  tip  along  in  cover  and  at  the  first 
opportunity  shoot  it?  That  is  to  me  tame  sport,  fit 
for  pot-hunters.  Dogs  must  be  allowed  to  mouth 
their  game,  and  do  it  by  hard  work,  if  you  want 


Forty  Years  Beagling 


them  to  stick  and  work.  I  claim  if  a  pack  of  bea- 
gles can't  catch,  on  fair  footing,  a  majority  of  rab- 
bits started,  if  the  cover  is  not  too  dense  and  briary, 
so  the  dogs  can't  make  a  run  at  them,  they  are  not 
properly  handled,  if  well-bred  beagles.  Beagles 
are  like  setters,  their  instinctive  qualities  can  be 
greatly  improved  by  proper  handling." 

"Dalg,"  in  Forest  and  Stream,  of  February 
10th,  1887,  states  that  the  reason  beagles  can  not 
run  hare  successfully  in  Northern  New  England, 
is  that  fii'st,  hares  give  very  little  scent;  secondly, 
that  they  are  hunted  after  a  snowstorm,  which  in 
these  latitudes  are  by  no  means  damp  storms; 
thirdly,  the  dogs  barking  jumps  other  hares,  which 
will  often  cross,  or  follow  along  for  a  distance,  the 
runway  of  the  first  hare  jumped.  Finally,  a  small 
dog  w^ill  sink  nearly  out  of  sight  in  the  deep  dry 
snow,  of  which  we  have  so  much  on  our  mountains, 
and  a  large  dog,  in  a  light  fall  of  snow  will  run 
altogether  too  fast. 

This  authority  would  seem  to  be  in  error  as  the 
trials  of  the  Northern  Hare  Club  during  the  last 
few  years  have  proven  that  beagles,  both  the  thir- 
teen and  fifteen  inch  size,  can  run  the  northern  hare 
or  snowshoe  rabbit  successfully,  and  it  is  an  admit- 
ted fact  that  the  snowshoe  rabbit  gives  off  more 
scent  than  the  cotton-tail  rabbit. 


Ground  Work 


Then  follow  a  series  of  discussions  whether  fox- 
hounds, beagles  or  their  cross,  or  harriers  are  the 
best  for  hare  work,  while  one  contributor,  "N.  C," 
states  that  all  hounds  are  thievish. 

*'H.  H.,"  about  this  time  writes  an  article  on 
''Beagles  for  Work  and  Show,"  and  states  that 
there  is  a  difference  between  them,  and  a  Mr.  W.  S. 
Clark  in  a  way  agrees  with  him.  Then  along  comes 
"L.  H.  T."  (mind  the  date),  August  4th,  1887,  and 
states  that  he  has  been  breeding  beagles  for  forty 
years,  which  places  the  origin  of  the  beagle  in  the 
United  States  as  far  back  as  1847.  What  type  of 
beagle  this  could  have  been  is  enwrapped  in  mys- 
tery, as  it  was  many,  many  years  before  General 
Rowett  imported  his  beagles  from  England.  "L. 
H.  T."  agrees  with  "H.  H."  on  there  being  two 
types  of  beagles,  one  for  the  bench  and  another  for 
the  field,  and  states  his  reasons,  which  difference  is 
still  amicably  discussed  by  the  breeders  of  today. 
He  also  gives  a  quotation  from  Ossian,  which 
"Coricon"  gives  in  his  work  on  British  Dogs,  as 
follows : 

There  is  a  kind  of  dog  of  mighty  fame 
For  hunting;  worthy  of  a   fairer   frarae^ 
By  painted  Britons  brave  in  war  they're  bred, 
Are  beagles  called,  and  to  the  chase  are  led. 
Their  bodies  small,  and  of  so  mean  a  shape, 
You'd  think  them  curs  that  under  tables  gape. 


8  Forty  Years  Beagling 

So  the  Briton  did  not  think  much  of  the  shape  of 
the  "merrie  httle  hounde"  in  those  days,  and 
then  "H.  H."  goes  on  with  his  study  of  Coricon, 
Markham,  and  Stonehenge  and  traces  the  rehef 
from  bondage  and  the  development  from  the  9"  to 
the  15"  hounds.  He  states  that  he  has  frequently, 
as  a  breeder,  found  a  difference  of  from  2"  to  3" 
in  one  litter.  The  final  paragraph  is  of  more  than 
passing  interest  as  follows: 

"The  exposure  of  the  present  condition  of  our 
bench  show  winners,  as  given  in  'L.H.T.'s'  article 
is  most  deplorable  I  confess,  and  should  call  forth 
a  rigid  inquiry  as  to  field  qualities  of  our  present 
champions." 

Then  along  comes  "Briar,"  in  the  American 
Field,  he  hails  from  Philadelphia,  who  says,  "A 
cobby  dog  can  get  himself  together  in  running 
much  quicker  than  a  long  back  dog,"  which  indi- 
cates a  difference  of  opinion.  Then  comes  "Zim," 
in  Forest  and  Stream,  of  September  1st,  1887,  say- 
ing he  has  eleven  of  the  little  hounds,  in  a  letter 
written  from  Springfield,  Massachusetts,  that  he 
is  a  hunter  and  not  a  bench  show  man.  Even  at 
that,  "Zim"  had  stayers  at  that  time,  for  he  speaks 
of  a  httle  bitch  as  having  been  out  running  rabbits 
continuously  for  36  hours,  and  this  only  two  weeks 
before  the  little  121/2"  bitch  whelped,  and  he  winds 


Ground  Work 


up  tliis  article  with  the  saying,  "Show  me  a  beagle 
that  is  only  fit  for  the  bench  and  not  a  hunter,  pro- 
viding he  has  had  the  chance  to  make  one,  and  I 
would  not  accept  him  as  a  gift  and  be  under  obliga- 
tion to  keep  him." 

Next  comes  an  article  on  "Dependence  on  Pedi- 
grees," by  "Hibernian,"  which  says:  "Pedigrees 
are  very  useful  things  in  the  doggy  world.  They 
enable  breeders  to  get  rid  of  a  lot  of  stock  that 
otherwise  would  be  and  ought  to  be  consigned  to 
the  bucket  in  puppyhood.  As  a  rule  the  novice's 
first  purchase  is  a  pedigree,  the  dog  itself  being  a 
secondary  consideration.  After  a  while  he  gets 
wise,  but  at  first  the  pedigree  is  the  most  essential 
part  of  the  purchase." 

And  then  we  read  of  another  race  run  down  at 
Mr.  Pottinger  Dorsey's  home  in  Frederick  County, 
Maryland,  where  Lee  2nd  just  missed  catching  the 
rabbit,  but  got  his  tail.  (How^  many  know  that 
at  one  time  this  hound  was  owned  by  Harry  T. 
Peters  of  the  Windhole  Kennels,  of  Islip,  Long 
Island?)  The  pack  consisted  of  Lee  2nd,  Boston, 
Imported  Chimer,  Wanderer,  Fancy,  Annie  Bell, 
Music,  Fairy,  Weenauman,  and  Blue  Dick. 

Mr.  Spencer  Borden  from  Fall  River,  Massa- 
chusetts, says  in  the  Rider  and  Driver  of  February 
11th,  1899,  that  "Experience,  with  study,  results 


10  Forty  Years  Beagling 

in  far  more  progress  with  good  results,  to  such  as 
review  carefully  the  jDast,  long  days  and  even  ages 
past,  so  with  Bellamy  I  say  to  all  young  men,  study 
past  events.  Look  backward.  It  is  impossible  to 
see  ahead,  except  a  very  short  distance.  And  how 
many  of  the  modern  day  beaglers  follow  such  good 
advice?" 

Then  again  we  learn  of  the  origin  and  organiza- 
tion of  the  New  England  Beagle  Club  in  the  press- 
room of  Mechanics  Building  (evidently  in  Boston) 
and  the  arrangements  for  their  first  set  of  field 
trials. 

Then  we  come  to  type,  for  in  Forest  and  Stream 
of  June  5th,  1890,  "Hibernia"  breaks  into  print 
with  the  statement  that  the  American  bred  beagle 
is  the  nearest  approach  to  a  miniature  foxhound 
that  has  yet  been  reached.  The  English  Cham- 
pion, Ringwood,  judging  from  the  illustrations  is 
simply  a  caricature  of  a  bloodhound  or  a  bad 
representation  of  one  of  your  old-style  Southern 
foxhounds. 

And  as  to  color  Mr.  S.  Reicnaf,  in  Forest  and 
Stream  of  September,  1888,  says  the  true  color  of 
the  beagle  is  black,  white  and  tan,  and  that  the 
blue  ticking  comes  from  the  old  blue  spotted  harrier 
or  a  native  small-eared  foxhound.  Therefore,  he 
suggests  that  all  who  are  trying  to  breed  winning 


Ground  Work  11 


beagles  should  steer  clear  of  pedigrees  containing 
the  names  of  Blue  Belles,  Blue  Boys  and  Blue 
Caps.  (This  does  not  seem  to  have  been  followed 
out,  for  in  many  of  our  successful  beagles  of  today 
we  find  the  blood  of  Hiram  Card's  Blue  Caps.) 

There  is  a  photograph  in  the  Stock  Keeper  of 
February  6th,  1892,  which  states  below  it  that 
P^rank  Forest  is  reputed  to  have  been  sold  by  the 
Forrest  Beagle  Kennels  of  Franklin,  Pennsyl- 
vania, to  Mr.  W.  S.  Gates  of  Chagrin  Falls,  Ohio, 
on  January  30th,  1891,  for  $1000,00,  so  this  great 
hound  did  bring  a  great  price  even  for  those  days 
or  now. 

Then  we  find  some  good  advice  from  Mr.  George 
F.  Beed,  of  Barton,  Vermont,  in  the  April  17th, 
1893,  issue  of  Forest  and  Stream,  in  which  he  says: 
"I  do  not  claim  to  Imow  it  all,  but  will  say  that 
those  intending  to  breed  their  bitches  this  year — 
don't  breed  to  the  first  dog  you  come  across  just 
because  he  is  called  a  beagle,  and  expect  to  raise 
prize  winners."  Mr.  Kreuder  in  replying  publicly 
to  this  remark  says,  a  week  later:  "I  will  say  that 
I  believe  that  while  beagles  have  been  bred  for 
many  years,  we  are  just  now  beginning  to  do  it 
systematically,  and  in  the  next  few  years  an  entirely 
different  dog  will  take  the  place  of  those  now  seen 
so  much,   and   forsooth,   thought  much   of.      Mr. 


12  Forty  Years  Beagling 

Kreuder  was  right,  and  so  was  Mr.  Watson  in  his 
book  written  some  time  later,  who  attributed  much 
of  the  help  to  men  like  Mr.  J.  L.  Kernochan.  And 
are  we  not  still  striving  at  something  different  on 
the  bench?" 

A  discussion  followed  in  the  columns  of  Forest 
and  Stream,  and  the  following  note  in  the  issue  of 
August  11th,  1894,  appeared  as  of  more  than  pass- 
ing notice:  "The  argument  as  to  whether  our  bea- 
gler  men  are  breeding  dogs  that  are  good  both  for 
bench  and  field,  is  an  interesting  one,  and  the  de- 
fenders of  the  pure  article  have  come  to  the  aid  of 
their  'merrie  houndes'  in  gallant  order.  But  many 
men  make  many  experiences,  and  the  beagle  men 
should  not  rest  here,  for  the  'rabbit  dog'  hunters 
have  fenced  themselves  round  some  pretty  strong 
opinions,  the  outgrowth  of  practical  experiments." 
A  personal  letter  from  a  prominent  field  trial 
judge,  probably  discloses  a  widely  spread  feeling 
when  he  says;  "I  amused  myself  by  writing  a  reply 
to  Messrs.  Ellis  and  Robinson,  who  have  been  at- 
tacking the  beagles,  and  amused  myself  this  morn- 
ing by  tearing  it  up.  What  is  the  use  of  defending 
the  beagle  against  an  attack  from  a  man  who 
owned  one,  and  condemned  the  whole  breed,  be- 
cause he  frightened  the  pup  in  its  youth  and  made 
it  gunshy,  or  against  a  man  who  appears  to  hunt 


Ground  Work  13 


only  for  count?  If  he  gets  a  lot  of  rabbits  the  dog 
is  good,  few  rabbits,  the  dog  is  bad.  He  ought  to 
get  a  ferret  and  a  net  and  give  up  hunting  with 
dogs  altogether/' 

This  note  was  brought  about  by  a  letter  of  Mr. 
F.  B.  Robinson's,  who  stated  that  you  could  take 
the  majority  of  beagles  and  they  did  not  amount 
to  much,  and  "I  can  bring  a  great  many  proofs  to 
that  effect"  is  what  he  stated. 

"Agamak,"  from  Oshkosh,  Wisconsin,  stated 
that  he  believed  that  too  much  stress  was  being  laid 
on  show  points  by  most  beagle  breeders  and  that 
therefore  the  hound  was  becoming  too  light  and 
weak. 

Then  comes  a  corker  from  "Hibernia,"  in 
Forest  and  Stream,  headed,  "EngHsh  vs.  American 
Beagles."  He  begins  in  a  good-natured  way  with 
the  statement  that  he  does  not  consider  it  fair  for 
three  Englishmen  and  one  American  to  jump  upon 
an  Irishman  because  he  stated  what  he  thought  was 
true  about  the  beagles  of  England  and  America. 
For  he  states  truthfully  that  when  he  wrote  the 
article  he  intended  to  run  away  like  the  tramp  who 
fired  the  bam  and  let  the  people  put  out  the  fire. 
Yet  did  they?  No.  Well,  as  he  continues,  "But 
as  none  of  the  Beagle  Club  will  come  to  my  rescue 
and  stick  up  for  theii*  standard,  i.e.,  a  beagle  is  a 


14  Forty  Years  Beagling 

miniature  foxhound,  I  will  give  another  installment 
of  my  little  piece  and  drop  the  matter  for  good. 
[But  was  it  so  little?]  For  fear  that  your  readers 
may  suppose  that  all  this  discussion  is  either  a 
masked  battery  loaded  to  kill  somebody  else's  dog 
or  else  one  of  those  harmless  bombs  that  are  con- 
tinually going  off  in  the  dog  press  to  boom  certain 
lots  of  beagles,  I  will  state  that  I  am  not  a  member 
of  a  beagle  club,  never  judged  in  the  ring  in  my 
life  and  never  used  the  reading  columns  of  the  dog 
papers  to  advertise  \\ithout  cost  any  dog  I  owned. 
"I  have  bred  beagles  since  1876,  but  have  been 
one  of  those  short-sighted  fellows  who  insist  upon 
a  beagle  doing  field  work,  no  matter  how  likely  he 
was  to  make  a  sawdust  hero.  Notwithstanding  all 
this,  I  have  an  admiration  for  the  type  that  General 
Kowett  brought  over  here,  and  I  want  to  blow  my 
little  whistle  in  protest  against  the  indiscriminate 
awarding  of  prizes  to  the  foxhound  or  bloodhound 
types,  which  has  been  going  on  since  the  importa- 
tion of  'Bannerman.'  Both  cannot  be  correct,  let  the 
breeders  decide  which  is  preferred  and  decisions  be 
given  accordingly.  'Namquoit'  is  quoted  as  saying 
that  the  beagles  he  saw  in  England  the  preceding 
summer  were  miniature  foxhounds.  Furthermore, 
this  chap  states  that  'Hibernia'  calls  (Enghsh) 
Ringwood's  head  a  caricature   of   a  bloodhound. 


Ground  Work  15 


Barring  the  long  ears  and  slight  throatiness,  I  con- 
sider it  an  excellent  ideal  of  the  American  heagle. 
"I  am  aware  that  beagles  of  the  type  of  Ring- 
wood  have  been  winning  in  this  country,  but  if  the 
portrait  published  resembles  in  head  an  English 
foxhound,  then  I  have  never  seen  one  either  in  the 
flesh  or  in  black  and  white.  If  it  does  not  resemble 
a  foxhound,  then  the  decisions  given  by  the  judges 
have  been  wrong  according  to  the  Beagle  Club's 
standard,  which  is  supposed  to  be  modelled  on  the 
type  of  the  Bowett  beagles." 

Referring  to  one  of  the  types  of  Bingwood,  a 
hound  called  "Blue  Bell  2nd,"  he  states  that  Mr. 
Mayhew  and  he  agree  on  one  point,  and  that  is  that 
Blue  Bell  2nd  is  not  a  miniature  foxhound  in  head. 
The  head  being  the  key  of  the  type  to  all  hound 
breeds  at  least,  consequently  the  little  bitch  can  not 
be  a  Liliputian  foxhound  at  all.  Mr.  Mayhew 
believes  a  beagle  ought  to  be  a  miniature  Southern 
hound  (bloodhound). 

The  beagle  standard  emphatically  states  that  a 
beagle  should  be  a  miniature  foxhound. 

''And  our  judges  give  their  decisions  in  favor 
of  all  three  types  (foxhound,  harrier  and  blood- 
hound).    And  is  this  not  true  today?" 

"Hibernia"  then  suggests  that  it  be  left  to  bea- 
gledom  to  decide  which  is  the  correct  type  and  that 


16 


Forty  Years  Beagling 


every  beagler  fill  out  the  answers  in  the  blank  below 
and  leave  it  to  certain  men  to  decide  the  question. 


BEAGLE    PUZZLE 

What  is  the  correct  type  of 
beagle,  foxhound,  bloodhound 
or  harrier? 

Answer 

Name 

Addi^ess 


"But  joking  aside,"  he  says,  "it  does  not  matter 
a  picayune  to  me  whether  the  type  is  bloodhound, 
harrier  or  foxhound,  only  set  one  standard,  breed 
to  it  and  judge  it."  Well,  there  is  some  ancient 
history  for  the  boys,  which  seems  to  be  the  case 
today,  for  do  not  Messrs.  Cowdin,  Smith,  Jones, 
Shallcross,  and  others  disagi-ee,  as  to  what  is  the 
real  type?  A  writer  named  Loutre  agrees  that 
there  were  more  than  one  type  of  beagles  in  exist- 
ence at  that  time. 


Ground  Work  17 


Then  along  comes  a  modest  chap,  who  signs  his 
name  "Brush,"  and  in  the  December  18th  issue  of 
Forest  arid  Stream  touches  on  beagle  training.  He 
says  after  reading  the  account  of  the  National  trials, 
that  he  knows  how  often  good  dogs  have  been 
spoiled  by  ignorant  men  who  did  not  know  how  to 
handle  them.  For,  as  he  says,  after  ruining  a  hound 
by  improper  usage,  they  raise  a  great  hue  and  cry 
against  the  breed  and  condemn  the  dog  for  faults 
for  which  the  man  is  responsible.  Then  he  asks  the 
members  of  the  National  Beagle  Club  to  tell  or 
j^ublish  their  ideas  on  training  dogs,  for,  he  says, 
there  is  another  fellow  of  a  paler  hue,  who,  when  a 
rabbit  appears,  rushes  after  him,  shouting  and  yell- 
ing like  a  broker  in  the  stock  exchange. 

Here  is  what  Mr.  Brown  says  about  some  beagle 
shows  and  the  judging  thereat  as  it  appears  to  him 
in  the  Spring  of  1891:  "One  learns  much,  one 
learns  little.  This  thought  comes  to  me  tonight  on 
perusing  the  awards  at  New  York,  Baltimore  and 
Pittsburgh  by  three  different  judges.  [Does  not 
the  same  apply  to  field  trials?]  Can  one  tolerably 
conversant  with  the  beagle  adopt  a  standard  from 
the  ideas  expressed  in  the  awards  that  would  be  of 
any  practical  service  to  a  breeder?  It  strikes  me 
forcibly  that  in  order  to  show  to  win,  we  must  first 
ascertain  who  is  to  officiate,  and  make  entries  ac- 


18  Forty  Years  Beagling 

cordingly.  [Mr.  Brown  little  thought  that  what 
was  in  his  mind  in  1891,  still  is  in  the  minds  of  many 
in  1921.]  My  dogs  may  win  hands  down  this 
week,  and  next  week  they  are  not  in  it.  Is  it 
pm-ely  a  matter  of  fancy  or  favoritism? 

"As  now  done,  yom-  dog  beats  mine  this  week, 
mine  gives  yours  a  go  next  week  and  so  on  through 
the  entire  circuit.  At  its  termination,  good,  bad 
and  indifferent  have  all  won  a  blue  ribbon." 

W.A.W.,  in  the  March  26th,  1891,  issue  of 
Forest  and  Stream,  goes  into  the  reasons  for  gun- 
shyness  in  dogs  and  says:  "In  case  your  puppy 
comes  to  you  at  several  months  of  age,  give  him 
time  to  learn  that  you  are  his  friend  and  guardian, 
and  that  your  home  is  his  home,  then  take  your  gun 
down  in  the  garden  and  shoot  a  half  dozen,  or  so, 
of  cat  birds,  or  go  over  in  the  orchard  near  by,  from 
time  to  time  and  pop  away  at  hairy  woodpeckers. 
Very  soon  he  will  be  out  in  the  orchard  enjoying 
the  fun  with  you.  Of  course,  all  this  is  only  neces- 
sary in  the  case  of  a  timid  puppy ;  but  every  puppy 
should  be  made  acquainted  with  the  sound  of  fire- 
arms before  he  is  taken  afield.  I  am  satisfied  that 
the  trouble  with  all  the  rules  I  have  read  for  curing 
gunshyness  is  that  there  is  too  much  form  and 
ceremony  in  the  whole  proceeding.  The  puppy's 
attention  is  too  closely  drawn  to  all  that  it  is  doing; 


Ground  Work  19 


you  take  him  at  close  quarters  and  cut  off  his  re- 
treat, all  of  which  is  very  demorahzing.  Never 
intercept  a  dog's  line  of  retreat  to  his  place  of 
refuge  in  time  of  alarm.  We  never  hear  of  city 
dogs  being  afraid  of  city  noises,  and  it  is  because 
they  are  left  to  themselves  to  settle  the  question  of 
sound  in  their  own  way.  You  let  a  half-grown 
puppy  go  in  the  street  and  away  from  home,  and 
ten  to  one  the  first  loud  noise  he  hears  will  send  him 
back  like  a  blue  streak  to  his  familiar  quarters ;  but 
in  a  Httle  while  he  will  be  as  bold  as  the  bravest. 
At  the  same  time  it  is  my  opinion  that  if  there  were 
less  inbreeding  there  would  be  very  much  less  of 
ffunshvness,  though  this  is  neither  here  nor  there, 
for  inbreeding  is  the  fashion,  and  fashion  rules  all 
things  great  or  small." 

"Breeding  in  and  in  is  good  for  the  blood, 
But  it  plays  the  devil  with  the  flesh." 

— Byron, 


CHAPTER    II 

TRAINING 

IN  regard  to  beagle  training,  "Quester,"  of 
Boston,  Massachusetts,  takes  up  this  question 
in  Forrest  and  Stream,  in  May,  1891,  and  says 
partly:  "Should  a  beagle  stop  at  or  give  tongue 
at  a  hole  when  the  quarry  has  run  in?  This  is  a 
question  upon  which  I  am  greatly  in  doubt  what  to 
answer.  If  I  should  say  that  he  should  stop  at  the 
hole,  someone  will  say,  'He  is  a  ferret  hunter,'  but 
if  no  is  the  answer,  another  one  says,  'How  does 
he  know  when  his  dog  has  lost  or  holed?'  Being 
too  young  to  bear  the  load  of  responsibility,  I  leave 
the  question  open. 

"Should  a  beagle  hunt  like  a  setter  or  pointer, 
i.e.,  should  he  quarter  his  ground  and  hunt  sys- 
tematically, or  range  indifferently,  going  at  his 
own  sweet  will?  I  should  say  by  all  means  the 
former,  that  is  hunt  like  a  pointer  or  setter.  Does 
not  a  setter  work  to  the  best  advantage  by  quarter- 
ing when  game  is  sought?  Is  not  game-finding  the 
object  of  hunting  with  a  beagle?  Some  say  no, 
but  that  trailing  is  the  primary  object.    Perhaps  it 

20 


Training  21 


is,  but  you  must  find  the  game  before  it  is  trailed, 
must  you  not?  This  is  also  an  open  question  and 
one  on  which  I  would  like  to  hear  different  opinions 
passed. 

"Let  us  hear  from and  a  host  of  others, 

telling  us  kids  'how  to  train  a  beagle  in  the  way 
he  should  go,'  or  else  after  we  have  adopted  a  plan 
of  our  own  contrary  to  theirs,  let  them  forever  hold 
their  peace  and  not  grumble  when  they  find  the 
trials  are  run  contrary  to  their  ideas." 

"Student,"  from  Hartford,  Connecticut,  and 
"S.P.M.,"  from  Pt.  Rowan,  Ontario,  take  up  the 
question  of  training,  and  the  latter  advocates  the 
use  of  a  horn,  and  says  that  he  goes  out  for  sport 
and  that  the  pot-hunters  laugh  at  him,  as  they  can 
take  a  ferret  and  kill  twice  as  many  without  a 
dog,  for  he  loves  to  sit  on  a  fence  and  listen  to  his 
hounds  go  into  the  brush,  waiting  for  them  to  start 
a  rabbit. 

Next  comes  "Uncas,"  in  June,  of  the  same  peri- 
odical, and,  referring  to  "Quester's"  remarks  about 
the  training  of  beagles,  as  to  whether  they  should 
be  under  control  or  not,  remarks  that  reference  is 
e\ddently  made  to  the  National  Beagle  Club  trials 
of  the  preceding  year,  which  calls  for  a  beagle  to  be 
under  control  and  therefore  agrees  with  "Quester." 
In  reference  to  this  he  likens  his  hounds  to  his  house 


22  Forty  Years  Beagling 

servants  whom  he  says  should  always  be  under  con- 
trol, and  states  that  if  you  have  no  control  over 
your  hounds  you  might  as  well  go  hunting  with  a 
wild  animal,  for  neither  would  be  of  any  use  to 
you.  So  he  argues  that  he  does  not  consider  it  a 
question  of  control,  but  does  as  to  the  amount  of 
control  that  is  desirable  which  seems  to  puzzle. 

"H.B.N.,"  of  Cookstown,  Canada,  contributes 
an  interesting  article  on  his  ideas  of  the  above  sub- 
ject, which  appeals  to  me  as  rather  interesting,  so 
that  I  will  quote  it  in  full,  as  follows:  "  'Quester 
asks  the  question,  should  a  beagle  be  under  control 
[when  in  the  field]  ?  and  adds,  'the  field  trials  say 
yes  and  so  do  I.'  Well,  I  will  not  say  that  'Quester' 
and  the  field  trials  know  anything  about  it,  as  that 
would  be  incultus,  but  I  do  say  that  I  have  yet  to 
see  a  well-trained  beagle  while  on  the  scent  of  a 
hare  that  any  man  can  call  off,  yea,  he  might  yell 
until  he  was  voiceless  and  for  all  a  good  beagle 
would  still  be  on  the  trail.  I  know  of  no  other  plan 
of  getting  a  well-trained  beagle  off  a  trail  than  by 
heading  him  and  catching  him.  With  me  this  is 
just  what  takes  some  of  the  pleasure  away  in  hunt- 
ing with  beagles.  I  am  often  ready  to  start  for 
home,  but  the  little  scamps  are  not,  therefore  I  have 
to  catch  them  and  tie  them  up  as  caught,  which 
often  takes  an  hour  or  two.    As  I  always  drive  to 


Training  23 


covert,  which  is  some  distance  away,  I  can  not  leave 
the  dogs  to  find  their  own  way  home.     'Quester' 
writes  that  he  is  of  the  opinion  that  a  beagle  should 
hunt  like  a  setter  or  pointer,  that  is,  quarter  his 
ground   and   hunt   systematically.      I    am   of   the 
opinion  that  it  is  not  possible  to  teach  a  beagle  to 
hunt  like  a  setter  or  pointer,  and  if  it  were  possible 
to  do  so  I  fail  to  see  of  what  advantage  it  would  be. 
A  good  and  well-trained  beagle  when  taken  to  any 
place  where  hares  frequent  will,  upon  being  re- 
leased, hunt  up  a  fresh  scent,  start  the  game  and 
hunt  it  until  killed  or  follow  the  trail  a  reasonable 
time.    My  plan  when  training  a  pup  is  to  take  the 
young  dog  out  when  7  or  8  months  of  age,  not  be- 
fore, with  an  old,  very  slow  dog,  the  slower  the  bet- 
ter, for  if  the  young  dog  should  lose  or  miss  the  old 
one,  he  will  hunt  his  trail,  giving  tongue  like  mad, 
and  take  no  notice  of  the  trail  of  the  game.    Never 
take  a  pup  out  with  the  pack,  for  if  you  do.  ten  to 
one,  he  will,  when  out,  hunt  and  tongue  the  pad' 
instead  of  the  game,  and  you  will  never  break  him 
of  the  habit.    Of  course,  beagles  from  good  hunting 
stock  will  break  and  train  themselves,  if  taken  out 
frequently  where  game  is  plentiful,  but  the  best  and 
easiest  plan  is,  as  I  have  stated  above,  to  take  the 
pup  or  puppies  out  with  a  slow  old  dog.     And  do 
not  expect  too  much  of  a  young  beagle  until  he  is 


24  Forty  Years  Beagling 

full  two  years  of  age.  A  few  beagles  make  good 
hunters  when  one  year  old,  but  the  majority  do 
not  become  first-class  hunters  mitil  they  have 
reached  two  or  more  years.  I  am  glad  to  see  by 
Forest  and  Stream  that  the  dear  little  beagle  is 
coming  more  into  notice.  Men  wishing  dogs  to  be 
under  control  when  hunting  hares  and  rabbits  had 
better  use  spaniels." 

Then  one  of  the  stewards  at  the  first  set  of  field 
trials  of  the  National  Beagle  Club,  under  the  nom 
de  plume  of  "Namquoit,"  says  that  while  he  never 
bred  or  trained  a  beagle  but  had  been  a  hunter  and 
had  hunted  over  a  few,  he  had  had  a  good  oppor- 
tunity to  see  what  was  wanted  and  what  was  not. 
"A  beagle  to  win  must  certainly  be  under  better 
control  than  were  the  ma j  ority  of  those  at  the  trials, 
and  even  the  winners,  I  will  wager,  will  be  under 
better  control  at  this  year's  trials.  Suppose  you 
go  hunting  in  some  new  country  and  your  train 
leaves  at  a  certain  hour.  Ten  minutes  before  the 
departure  of  the  train  you  find  your  dog;  he  is 
hunting,  but  not  on  trail.  You  whistle,  yoLU-  dog 
looks  up  at  you,  gives  his  tail  an  extra  swish  and 
disappears  into  the  bushes.  Tableau — dog  missed, 
train  missed  and  a  walk  hom.e.  Had  he  been  prop- 
erly trained  he  would  have  come  to  heel  and  your 
wife  would  not  have  cried  her  eyes  out  thinking 


1 


I 


Training  25 


you  had  blown  the  top  of  your  head  off.  At  the 
last  trials,  I  had  the  distinct  recollection  seen  by 
the  handlers,  dogs  were  called,  one  responded  to  the 
call  and  immediately  picked  up  the  trail.  The 
other  paid  no  attention  to  his  owner  and  got  left. 
I  don't  accuse  anybody,  both  had  an  equal  chance; 
I  only  state  the  circumstances  as  they  occurred. 
In  another  instance,  one  owner  yelled  himself 
hoarse,  and  disconcerted  the  other  man's  dog  but 
made  no  impression  on  his  own. 

"  'Quester'  asks,  should  a  beagle  hunt  like  a  set- 
ter or  pointer — i.e.,  quarter  his  ground  and  hunt 
systematically?  I  say  certainly,  but  the  beagle 
should  show  rabbit  sense,  the  same  as  the  setter 
shows  bird  sense — i.e.,  he  should  hunt  the  likely 
places  fii^st.  Some  say  no,  that  trailing  is  the 
primary  object.  I  remember  at  the  last  trial,  a 
little  bitch,  a  sure  trailer,  striking  a  trial  and  pot- 
tering around  until  everybody  got  tired  of  watch- 
ing her.  We  all  went  on  ahead,  two  or  three  other 
dogs  ran  around  her  but  failed  to  find  anything. 
They  moved  on  and  started  and  ran  two  or  three 
rabbits  before  the  bitch  gave  tongue.  She  finally 
found  her  rabbit,  but  the  others  by  quartering  and 
hunting  over  more  ground  had  found  three  in  the 
meantime.    Which  was  the  best  dog?" 

A  Mr.  Bradley  then  comes  along  in  the  June 


26  Forty  Years  Beagling 

25th,  1891,  issue  of  Forest  and  Stream  with  his  say, 
which  follows  on  the  training  question:  "What  is 
a  perfectly  trained  beagle?  Is  he  a  dog  that  is 
under  control,  or  is  he  a  dog  that  disappears  as  soon 
as  he  enters  the  woods,  and  roams  at  his  own  sweet 
will  here,  there  and  everywhere?  In  my  opinion, 
the  perfect  hunting  beagle  should  follow  at  heel 
till  ordered  on ;  he  should  hunt  the  thicket  or  swamp 
into  which  he  is  sent,  and  should  come  to  his  mas- 
ter's call  at  once  unless  on  a  hot  track.  One  of  the 
first  beagles  I  ever  owned  I  taught  to  'come  in,' 
'charge,'  and  'heel.'  The  little  fellow  obeyed  well, 
and  it  is  fact  that  I  never  owned  or  hunted  with  a 
beagle  that  gave  as  much  sport  as  he  did.  If  I  saw 
a  rabbit,  Jip  would  come  to  my  call ;  if  I  wished  to 
change  my  hunting  ground,  he  would  follow  at 
heel;  and  many  times  I  have  made  him  charge, 
while  I  crawled  down  to  a  grass  hole  for  a  shot  at 
black  ducks.  He  was  under  good  control  unless 
he  had  a  hot  track,  and  then  neither  threats  nor 
entreaties  could  make  him  leave  it  until  the  rabbit 
was  started  and  holed. 

"  'Brockton,'  in  your  issue  of  June  4th  [1891],  in 
speaking  of  such  a  beagle  as  I  described,  says, 
'They  would  be  useless,  inasmuch  as  they  are  not 
built  for  long  runs,  and  they  would  be  so  much 
under  control  that  they  would  get  tired  hunting 


Training  27 


and  be  looking  for  orders.'  I  can  not  follow  his 
reasoning,  and  my  experience  does  not  justify  this 
theory.  Many  a  time  Jip  ran  a  fox  or  hare  twelve 
or  fifteen  hours;  he  never  was  'tired  hunting'  and 
never  'was  looking  for  orders,'  but  if  I  gave  the 
orders  he  obeyed.  The  comparative  value  of  differ- 
ent methods  of  training  can  only  be  learned  by 
matching  dogs  trained  in  different  ways  against 
each  other.  I  hope  'Brockton'  will  go  to  the  next 
N.  B.  C.  field  trials  with  two  or  three  of  his  best 
dogs.  He  will  have  a  hearty  welcome,  fair  play  and 
a  good  time,  and  may  the  best  dog  win.  To  those 
who  have  had  Httle  or  no  experience  in  training 
beagles,  let  me  offer  one  word  of  advice — don't 
whip  a  young  dog  under  any  circumstances,  and 
don't  be  easily  discouraged.  While  it  is  true  that 
some  beagles  will  hunt  when  six  months  old,  or 
even  younger,  yet  there  are  many  which  will  not 
run  until  they  are  fully  developed.  I  remember  a 
dog  which  finally  became  one  of  the  best  hunters  I 
ever  saw,  which  would  not  hunt  or  even  notice  a 
rabbit  until  he  was  almost  two  years  old.  This  last 
winter  I  had  in  my  pack  a  couple  of  pups  from 
splendid  hunting  stock.  I  took  them  out  week 
after  week,  and  the  only  thing  they  hunted  for  was 
a  sunny  spot  and  a  bed  of  dry  leaves;  they  took 
absolutely  no  interest  in  the  hunt  and  I  was  dis- 


28  Forty  Years  Beagling 

couraged.  But  when  the  season  was  aknost  over, 
they  suddenly  found  what  they  were  there  for,  and 
the  way  they  hustled  the  rabbits  from  that  time  on 
was  surprising  and  delightful.  I  hope  to  have  one 
of  them  at  the  next  field  trials." 

"Uncas"  then  continues  his  advice  on  how  to 
train  a  pup  in  the  July  2nd  [1891]  issue  of  the 
same  sporting  paper  as  follows:  "The  pup  in 
question  being  seven  or  eight  months  old  is  taken 
out  and  followed  around  slowly,  about  a  rod  behind, 
occasionally  speaking  an  encouraging  word  to  him, 
and  endeavoring  to  hold  him  to  his  work,  always 
remembering  to  keep  him  ahead  of  you.  It  is 
hardly  possible  he  will  run  this  rabbit  very  far  be- 
fore he  will  get  thrown,  but  if  he  runs  it  a  hundred 
yards  or  even  less,  you  have  made  a  good  beginning 
and  one  that  will  remain  in  your  pup's  memory 
several  days  at  least.  I  don't  think  it  advisable  to 
make  a  puppy  of  this  age  do  too  much  at  first. 
Your  time  will  not  by  any  means  be  wasted  if  you 
do  not  run  a  rabbit  at  all  the  fii'st  time  or  for  the 
matter  of  that,  for  the  first  half  dozen  times  you 
take  your  pup  out  with  you,  because  he  will  be 
getting  more  and  more  accustomed  to  his  surround- 
ings, and  this  means  a  great  deal  to  any  dog,  espe- 
cially if  he  is  inclined  to  be  the  least  bit  timid,  as 
very  many  beagles  are.     I  will  now  suppose  you 


Training  29 


have  had  your  pup  out  several  times  and  he  has 
run  a  few  rabbits,  in  his  own  way,  in  his  own  time, 
it  is  now  that  you  step  in  again  to  your  pup's  ad- 
vantage and  aid  him.  Cast  him  off  from  you — he 
should  be  made  to  follow  at  heel  until  he  gets  the 
word  to  leave,  and  where  you  only  have  one  to  at- 
tend to,  this  is  comparatively  easy,  especially  as  you 
have  taught  him  that  you  are  master  when  he  was 
young  and  never  given  him  an  opportunity  to  think 
otherwise.  Let  him  search  the  favorable  places 
and  the  unfavorable  ones  too,  as  he  most  likely  will 
until  he  strikes  a  trail  or  starts  his  game. 

"Right  here  let  me  say  that  in  rare  instances  a 
dog  will  run  mute,  or  what  is  worse  still,  will  not 
leave  your  side  under  any  provocation.  In  the  first 
place  you  can  easily  overcome  this  muteness,  which 
by  the  way,  is  very  rare  indeed  in  a  well-bred 
beagle,  by  running  your  puppy  with  an  old  dog — 
a  good  *tonguer.'  In  the  second  instance,  if  re- 
peatedly moving  yourself  every  time  your  pup  sits 
down  and  calling  him  to  you  does  not  cure  him,  I 
would  recommend  the  following:  apply  internally 
through  the  left  ear  in  one  dose :  Sig.  Take  Hazard 
FFG,  3I/2  drs.,  insert  in  a  U.  M.  C.  shell,  place  on 
this  one  cardboard  and  two  pink-edge  wads,  then 
put  in  about  two  dozen  buckshot  and  discharge  at 
short  range.    It  is  my  opinion  it  is  the  only  remedy, 


30  Forty  Years  Beagling 

and  I  will  vouch  for  its  effectiveness  if  used  accord- 
ing to  direction. 

"Having  disposed  of  a  mute  dog  and  the  habit- 
ually 'tired'  dog,  I  will  now  return  to  the  time  when 
your  pup  starts  game.  As  soon  as  you  are  sure 
he  is  on  a  trail,  go  to  him  and  watch  him.  If  he  is 
pottering  around  and  seems  to  be  making  no  head- 
way, push  him  a  little;  tell  him  to  go  on;  go  out; 
etc.,  making  him  search  new  places,  and  here  is 
where  your  control  comes  in.  Send  him  in  to  the 
most  likely  places,  and  if  he  is  accustomed  to  obey- 
ing you,  he  will  go  without  hesitation,  and  as  soon 
as  you  think  he  has  worked  a  place  long  enough  to 
have  thoroughly  covered  it,  call  him  to  another  and 
so  on,  until  you  get  him  on  a  good,  straight  trail. 

*'As  soon  as  he  has  things  straightened  out  drive 
him  as  fast  as  you  can,  keeping  right  behind  him, 
which  you  can  easily  do  with  a  puppy  of  this  age, 
and  make  him  run  as  fast  as  he  can  trail.  This 
will  be  of  special  advantage  to  him  when  the  rabbit 
makes  a  'fling,'  as  you  being  so  much  higher  up 
than  the  puppy,  can  see  the  most  likely  places  to 
cast  in  and  thus  save  much  time  at  a  period  when 
it  is  valuable — when  the  trail  is  hot.  Keep  this 
mode  of  procedure  up  until  your  pup  is  too  fast 
for  you,  then  only  endeavor  to  keep  within  hearing 
and  be  in  at  the  'flings,'  as  you  can  always  be  of 


I 


Training  31 


advantage  here  whether  with  a  puppy  or  an  old 
dog.  After  this  it  is  no  longer  work  but  pleasure. 
You  have  got  your  puppy  to  run  tolerably  well, 
and  every  time  you  take  him  out  makes  him  better, 
and  now  you  have  only  to  teach  him  to  'mark  the 
hole'  and  the  use  of  the  gun,  etc.  I  have  purposely 
refrained  from  referring  to  tlie  gun  before  as  I 
never  bring  it  into  play  until  the  puppy  is  other- 
w^ise  thoroughly  trained,  for  the  simple  reason  that 
I  believe  that  a  puppy  can  be  thoroughly  gun- 
broken  in  half  a  dozen  lessons  at  the  outside.  To 
do  this  I  load  for  a  12  gauge,  a  dozen  shells  with 
II4  drs.  of  powder  and  three  wads,  and  when  I  get 
my  puppy  on  a  hot  trail  and  running  well,  I  dis- 
charge one  barrel  of  my  gun.  The  puppy  should 
not  be  nearer  than  40  or  50  yards  at  first,  and 
should  not  see  you  when  you  fire — this  last  I  believe 
to  be  very  important.  The  puppy  may  stop  and 
look  up,  and  may  quit  altogether,  but  what  is  most 
likely  of  all,  will  continue  with  his  work  without 
making  more  than  a  momentary  stop,  if  indeed  he 
stops  at  all.  Should  he  pay  but  little  attention  to 
the  report,  you  can  safely  try  him  again,  gradually 
coming  nearer  until  he  will  stand  a  full  charge  in 
the  open  without  flinching  and  when  not  on  the 
trail.  But  remember  to  make  haste  slowly  in  this 
matter,  as  many  otherwise  valuable  dogs  have  been 


32  Forty  Years  Beagling 

ruined  for  all  practical  purposes  by  a  little  careless- 
ness in  the  beginning. 

"Now  I  come  to  the  dog  that,  as  soon  as  he  hears 
the  report  of  the  gun,  quits  his  work;  and  here  you 
will  see  the  value  of  keeping  yourself  concealed 
from  him  when  you  fire,  for  if  he  is  frightened,  the 
minute  he  quits  his  work,  he  will  look  for  you,  his 
master.  If,  on  the  other  hand,  he  understands  that 
this  awful  noise  proceeds  from  you,  he  will  be  very 
apt  to  prefer  your  room  to  your  company,  and  will 
not  infrequently  scud  for  home.  I  will  suppose, 
however,  that  you  have  followed  out  my  plan  and 
the  pup  does  not  connect  you  in  any  way  with  the 
noise,  then  you  should  run  to  where  he  was  driving, 
calling  to  him  and  endeavoring  to  excite  him  to  run 
again.  The  chances  are  that  you  will  succeed  and 
get  him  to  work  again.  Let  him  finish  his  hunting 
today  without  any  more  shooting,  and  on  the  fol- 
lowing day  or  the  next  day  you  take  him  out,  re- 
peat, and  you  will  soon  accustom  him  to  the  light, 
then  the  full  charges.  I  believe  this  plan  would  be 
equally  effectiA^e  on  setters,  and  it  is  certainly  much 
better  than  fish  horns  and  tin  pans.  Your  pup  will 
now  go  out  with  you  and  drive  his  rabbit  and  let 
you  shoot  it  ahead  of  him,  if  you  wish,  and  will 
come  to  you  when  called,  and  not  on  the  trail,  and 
here  is  where  I  think  some  of  your  readers  make 


I 


i 


Training  33 


a  mistake  in  expecting  a  dog  to  leave  the  scent.  He 
should  be  taught  to  obey  you  at  all  times,  excepting 
when  on  the  trail;  then,  if  you  are  wise,  you  will 
let  him  rule,  or  if  you  want  him,  catch  him  off.  I 
believe  it  is  next  to  impossible  to  make  a  good  bea- 
gle leave  the  trail  unless  you  are  within  a  rod  or  so, 
and  not  then  if  the  track  is  very  fresh,  and  should 
you  succeed  in  so  doing,  it  would  eventually  spoil 
your  dog  for  hunting  purposes.  At  all  other  times 
he  should  obey  you,  and  if  taught,  as  I  have  de- 
scribed, he  will  obey.  You  might  as  well  ask  a 
setter  or  pointer  to  leave  his  point  as  to  call  a  beagle 
off  a  'hot  foot.' 

"The  best  way  I  know  to  make  a  dog  mark  the 
hole,  w^hich  is  quite  an  important  point,  when  you 
come  to  consider,  by  this  means  you  can  tell  ex- 
actly what  has  become  of  your  quarry  without, 
perhaps,  a  long  tramp  and  a  weary  search  for  the 
dogs,  is  to  get  a  rabbit  or  two  every  time  you  go  out 
and  make  the  dog  stay  and  watch  you.  You  can, 
of  course,  use  a  crowbar,  but  by  far  the  best  and 
easiest  way  is  to  use  a  ferret,  muzzled.  This  is,  I 
well  know,  against  the  law  in  some  states,  but  it  is 
about  the  only  way  to  do  if  you  wish  to  teach  your 
dog,  unless  you  use  the  crowbar,  which  attains  the 
same  end  but  is  more  laborious  and  within  the  law. 
I  will  suppose  your  dog  has  run  bunny  to  earth, 


34  Forty  Years  Beagling 

and  by  a  little  searching  you  have  found  the  hole. 
Try  to  get  your  pupp}^  to  dig  it  if  you  can,  if  not, 
tie  him  near  and  put  in  the  ferret.  As  soon  as  you 
ferret  is  in  untie  your  puppy  and  hold  him  facing 
the  hole.  In  a  minute  out  comes  the  rabbit  almost 
in  your  face — unloose  your  dog  as  soon  as  bunny 
appears  and  you  will  see  a  lively  chase  until  cover 
is  reached.  Now  as  soon  as  your  ferret  appears, 
catch  him,  slip  him  in  your  pocket  and  follow  your 
dog.  A  few  such  experiences  as  these  will  teach 
your  dog  to  stay  at  the  hole,  and  by  patting  him 
on  the  flanks  and  egging  him  on  you  can  usually 
get  him  to  barking.  Yom-  dog  is  now  well  trained, 
and  having  got  him  perfected  so  far,  you  can  add 
such  little  points  as  your  style  of  hunting  may  sug- 
gest or  necessitate.  Several  things  you  should 
bear  in  mind,  i.e.,  that  a  dog  to  do  good  work  alone 
must  be  the  superior  of  a  good  pack  dog,  inasmuch 
as  he  must  combine  in  one  dog  all  the  good  qualities 
that  are  perhaps  divided  among  several  members 
of  the  pack,  also  that  you  should  never  allow  a  dog 
to  get  in  the  habit  of  thinking  that  perhaps  you 
want  him  and  perhaps  you  don't,  therefore  don't 
try  to  call  a  beagle,  a  hundred  yards  away  off  a 
hot  scent,  as  the  chances  are  very  hkely  he  will  not 
come,  and  you  have  lost  just  so  much  control  over 
him  every  time  you  allow  him  to  disobey  you;  in 


Training  35 


other  words,  never  issue  a  command  to  your  dog 
you  are  not  prepared  to  enforce. 

"Much  more  might  be  said  on  this  subject  of 
beagle  training,  as  probably  no  two  men  use  just 
the  same  method  to  gain  their  end,  but  as  I  have 
no  wish  to  monopohze,  I  will  withdi-aw  and  listen 
to  what  others  may  have  to  say." 

In  July  of  the  same  year,  Mr.  George  F.  Reed, 
of  Barton,  Vermont,  than  whom  in  his  day  there 
was  probably  no  greater,  better  or  more  enthusi- 
astic an  authority  on  the  subject  of  the  beagle,  has 
his  say  as  to  whether  a  beagle  should  be  under  con- 
trol or  not,  and  in  reply  to  "Quester's"  inquiry  as 
to  whether  a  beagle  should  be  under  control  or  not, 
says : 

"He  certainly  should  be.  He  should  know  his 
master's  voice  and  come  to  him  when  spoken  to, 
if  he  has  not  a  rabbit  started.  When  reaching  the 
hunting  grounds  a  beagle  should  be  left  to  his  own 
free  will  to  hunt  for  his  trail  and  follow  it  until 
his  game  is  started  or  lost  entirely.  If  not  able 
to  find  a  track  in  that  piece  of  timber,  he  should 
swing  in  to  you.  Such  a  beagle  will  generally  give 
you  six  days  hunting  in  a  week  and  not  be  jumping 
around  your  heels  one  half  of  the  time  waiting  for 
orders.  If  the  man  is  going  to  do  the  starting  and 
the  beagle  the  trailing  only,  at  the  field  trials,  why 


36  Forty  Years  Beagling 


a  beagle  that  is  broken  to  charge,  to  heel  and  go  on, 
will  be  a  nice  little  dog  for  some  hunters  to  have 
around  until  a  better  dog  or  the  man  starts  a  rabbit. 

"I  have  broken  a  great  many  beagles,  and  own 
today  as  good  as  the  next  man,  or  I  think  I  do,  but 
I  do  not  own  one  that  I  can  call  from  a  hot  trail 
and  I  don't  want  to  own  that  kind,  for  they  are  apt 
to  be  no  good,  and  my  advice  to  beginners  is  this: 
Teach  your  dog  all  you  are  a  mind  to,  but  don't 
try  to  break  a  good  w^orking  beagle,  one  from 
hunting  stock,  to  leave  his  hot  trail  when  you  speak 
to  him. 

"My  old  Sldp,  the  dam  of  Frank  Forrest  and 
Tare  and  lots  of  other  good  ones,  is  well  broken 
and  will  mind  at  most  times,  but  it  will  take  more 
than  a  brass  band  to  make  her  leave  a  hot  trail. 

"I  break  my  beagles  to  do  all  the  work,  and  not 
to  expect  any  help  from  me  whatever  happens.  I 
don't  go  out  for  that  part  of  it,  and  if  you  own  the 
right  strain,  you  will  not  have  to  do  anything  only 
unloose  the  dogs  when  near  the  game  and  catch  up 
your  dogs  or  leave  them  running  if  you  want  to 
when  done  hunting.  In  answer  to  'Namquoit,' 
when  he  asks  which  was  the  best  dog,  I  say  the 
iTttle'bitch  that  had  the  nose,  head  and  sand  to  pick 
up  her  cold  trail  and  start  the  game — the  others 
were  slashers. 


Training  37 


"My  ideas  of  a  good  beagle  are  these:  He  should 
be  a  good  starter,  for  that  is  when  the  fun  com- 
mences, a  good  steady  driver,  a  fast  barker  and  a 
stayer.  With  that  kind  of  a  dog,  new  beginner, 
don't  give  him  all  you  can  stuff  into  him  for  break- 
fast the  day  you  are  going  to  run  him  at  the  field 
trials,  for,  my  word  for  it,  you  will  get  left  if  you 
do." 

Then  comes  Mr.  C.  S.  Wixom,  of  Covert,  New 
York,  who  says  that  he  agrees  with  Mr.  Reed,  for 
he  wants  no  beagle  called  from  a  good  warm  trail, 
nor  does  he  want  one  who  expects  him  to  follow 
close  on  his  heels  to  help  him  out  should  bunny  be 
a  bit  cunning  and  turn  short  corners.     He  says: 

"If  I  must  start  the  quarry,  I  may  as  well  shoot 
at  him  when  he  starts,  as  I  would  a  game  bird. 
I  take  my  beagles  to  some  place  where  I  have  some 
likelihood  of  finding  rabbits,  turn  them  loose  and 
let  them  do  all  the  hunting.  If  I  see  the  rabbit  and 
shoot  and  miss,  I  whoop  to  the  dogs  and  put  them 
on  where  I  last  saw  the  game.  I  always  do  this 
to  teach  them  to  come  to  the  gun.  But  I  don't 
teach  them  to  charge,  quarter,  heel,  and  drop  to 
shot,  etc.,  I  hunt  with  beagles  for  pleasure,  and  I 
can  assure  you  it  would  be  no  pleasure  for  me  if  I 
had  to  do  all  the  hunting,  starting,  and  give  orders 
to  from  six  to  twelve  beagles  all  at  one  time — no. 


38  Forty  Years  Beagling 


it  would  be  too  much  like  work,  and  I  was  born 
tired. 

"I  expect  to  show  up  at  the  field  trials  to  be  held 
at  Nanuet  in  November,  and  in  all  probability  my 
dogs  will  get  pegged  back  simply  because  they  are 
not  under  control,  and  perhaps  because  there  are 
better  hunters.  Still,  like  Mr.  Reed,  I  think  I  have 
as  good  beagles  as  the  next  man. 

"In  one  of  your  contemporaries  some  party  tells 
us  that,  in  training  his  beagles,  he  'rushes  to  start- 
ing point  and  follows  right  on  trail,  close  to  their 
heels,  etc'  Xow,  that's  all  very  well,  but  if  he  can 
follow  'close  on  the  heels'  of  my  hunting  pack  for 
two  hours,  or  one  hour,  he  can  make  more  money 
as  a  pedestrian  in  six  months  than  he  can  out  of 
dogs  in  twenty  years." 

So  it  would  seem  that  in  those  days  of  the  early 
Nineties  the  beaglers  had  their  various  ideas  of  how 
to  train  and  hunt  beagles  as  they  varied  in  their 
ideas  of  the  interpretations  of  the  beagle  standard 
which  was  adopted  by  the  parent  organization,  for 
from  what  follows  on  this  subject  the  minds  of 
those  days  were  more  or  less  the  minds  of  today, 
except  as  to  size. 


CHAPTER    III 


SIZE 


IT  would  seem  that  Mr.  F.   C.  Phoebus,  of 
Bernardsville,   New  Jersey,   started  matters 
by  suggesting  that  the  size  of  the  beagle  as 
described  as   not  to  exceed   15   inches   should  be 
raised  an  inch  to  sixteen  inches. 

"Bradley,"  in  Forest  and  Stream  of  May,  1892, 
takes  up  the  cudgels  in  behalf  of  the  standard  as 
follows:  Saying  that,  as  he  remembers  it,  "Mr. 
Phoebus's  argument  was  that  choice  beagle  pups 
when  they  come  to  maturity,  sometimes  exceed  15" 
in  height,  but  rarely,  if  ever,  go  over  16".  Mr. 
Phoebus  is  correct,  when  he  says  beagles  rarely  go 
over  16"  at  the  shoulder.  But  why  are  they  no 
larger  ?  Merely  because  they  are  bred  from  beagles 
which  conform  to  the  present  standard.  Let  us, 
however,  suppose,  for  a  moment  that  the  standard 
has  been  raised  to  16",  and  we  have  succeeded  in 
breeding  some  typical  beagles  which  just  scrape 
under  the  new  measure — they  are  perfect  and  we 
decide  to  match  them.  Let  us  ask  any  breeder  if  a 
few  of  these  pups  will  not  be  as  liable  to  exceed  our 

39 


40  Forty  Years  Beagling 

new  standards  as  our  present  beagles  are  to  exceed 
the  existing  standard  ?  And  then,  will  not  the  same 
argument  which  is  now  used  apply  just  as  forcibly 
to  a  further  increase  in  the  limit  of  size?  I  believe 
it  will,  and  once  started  we  shall  keep  on  till,  after 
a  time,  it  will  be  difficult  to  distinguish  a  large 
beagle  from  a  small  foxhound,  and  there  will  be 
no  distinct  dividing  line  between  the  two  breeds. 

*'Mr.  Phoebus  further  argues  that  because  the 
limit  of  the  small  class  has  been  increased  from  12 
to  13  inches,  that  of  the  large  should  be  increased 
in  proportion.  I  can  not  agree  with  him.  When 
the  subject  of  the  field  trials  came  before  the  Na- 
tional Beagle  Club,  owners  of  small  dogs  asked  a 
class  for  their  favorites.  The  field  trial  committee 
thought  it  was  not  fair  to  run  a  dog  only  a  trifle 
over  12  inches  in  height  against  a  15-inch  dog.  The 
little  fellow  would  have  no  chance  to  win,  for  he 
could  not  keep  up  with  his  large  opponent.  After 
careful  consideration  it  was  thought  fair  to  make 
two  classes — one  for  beagles  13  inches  and  under, 
and  one  for  those  15  inches  and  under.  This  was 
done  to  bring  dogs  which  were  nearly  the  same  size 
in  the  same  class.  Then,  that  the  bench  show  classes 
might  correspond  with  field  trial  classes,  the  change 
was  made  on  the  bench. 

"I  have  great  regard  for  the  opinion  of  my  friend 


Size  41 

Mr.  Phoebus,  but  I  can  see  nothing  inconsistent  in 
keeping  the  standai'd  where  it  is  and  at  the  same 
time  giving  the  small  class  an  additional  inch.  In 
making  this  change,  not  one  beagle  has  been  made 
eligible  to  competition  which  was  ineligible  before ; 
the  smaller  dog  has  merely  been  taken  from  the 
large  class,  where  he  could  not  win,  and  put  in  a 
class  where  he  has  a  fair  chance  with  those  of  his 
own  size.  We  must  have  an  arbitrary  limit  of 
height,  and  in  my  opinion  the  framers  of  the  pres- 
ent standard  did  well  to  place  it  where  it  is.  Let 
us  keep  it  there.  Increasing  the  size  of  our  favorite 
will  not  increase  his  desire  or  his  ability  to  kill  his 
game  or  make  him  more  typical.  Let  him  remain 
*the  merrie  little  beagle.'  " 

Next  comes  Mr.  W.  H.  Ashburner,  of  Yeadon, 
Delaware,  who  says:  "In  regard  to  a  letter  from 
Mr.  F.  C.  Phoebus  under  date  of  April  7th,  1892, 
to  the  National  Beagle  Club,  asking  them  to  change 
the  height  of  beagles  from  15  to  16  inches,  I  would 
say  from  the  tone  of  his  letter  he  desires  the  change 
asked  for  by  him  to  allow  some  beagles  he  owns  or 
is  interested  in,  at  present  over  height,  to  come  un- 
der the  standard.  I,  as  a  member  of  the  Beagle 
Club,  am  opposed  to  any  such  change  in  height  to 
accommodate  any  one  owner  or  class  of  beagles. 
"The  standard  was  framed  by  a  gentleman  who 


42  Forty  Years  Beagling 

has  had  a  great  deal  more  experience  than  ever  Mr. 
Phoebus  has,  notwithstanding  his  eighteen  years' 
experience.  Dr.  L.  H.  Twadell,  a  gentleman 
loiown  to  all  beagle  owners,  the  chairman  of  the 
committee  appointed  to  draft  a  standard,  with  his 
forty  years'  experience,  is  with  the  other  two  mem- 
bers, X.  Elmore  and  the  late  General  Rowett,  fully 
competent  to  give  us  a  proper  standard  and  height 
than  an  individual.  In  all  due  respect  to  Mr. 
Phoebus's  ideas,  I  am  opposed  to  any  change  he 
proposes  as  to  a  scale  of  points  or  height.  If  we 
commence  to  alter  the  standard  there  is  no  telling 
when  or  where  it  will  end.  As  a  member  of  the 
club  and  one  who  is  interested  in  beagles,  I  am 
against  changes  to  the  standard." 

Mr.  A.  C.  Kreuger,  of  Wrightsville,  Pennsyl- 
vania, joins  the  critics  regarding  the  changes  of  the 
standard  and  says:  "In  the  discussion  of  the  pro- 
posed change  of  the  standard  height  of  the  English 
beagle,  you  may  add  my  name  to  the  list  of  those 
who  emphatically  oppose  such  a  measure. 

"The  National  Beagle  Club  can  feel  proud  of 
its  record  so  far,  but  should  it  tamper  with  the 
standard  that  has  done  the  breed  so  much  good 
since  its  adoption,  I  predict  that  the  harmony  which 
now  evidently  prevails  in  its  ranks  will  be  marred. 

"There  is  no  necessity  for  enumerating  reasons 


Size  43 

for  the  opposition  to  such  a  change.  No  logical 
reasons  have  been  given — and  never  will — why  such 
a  change  should  be  made.  My  acquaintance  and 
experience  with  the  beagle  fraternity  at  large  is  of 
considerable  scope,  and  as  I  let  them  file  by  me 
mentally  I  fail  to  see  but  two  (Mr.  Phoebus  one  of 
them)  who  would  favor  such  a  change.  Should  the 
N.  B.  C.  have  any  intention  of  attempting  such  a 
change — but  I  give  that  body  credit  in  believing 
that  such  a  possibility  does  not  exist — then  let  us 
have  their  best  reason  for  so  doing,  and  I  am  con- 
fident that  our  little  favorites  will  find  defenders 
of  their  cause  in  plenty. 

"As  for  myself,  the  standard  to  which  I  endeavor 
to  breed  will  never  exceed  fifteen  inches,  rather  less 
if  any  change  must  be  made,  and  that  for  basket 
beagles  not  over  twelve  inches.  They  do  the  work 
I  require  of  them  to  my  entire  satisfaction,  and  any 
additional  size  would  only  impair  the  quality  of  the 
work.  Just  as  every  other  breeder,  I  have  bred 
some  oversized  specimens  and  some  as  good  as  any 
man  has  produced.  They  have,  with  the  other  ex- 
treme, been  classed  as  weeds.  Let  every  breeder 
seek  to  breed  to  fit  the  standard  and  not  endeavor 
to  have  the  standard  changed  to  fit  his  breeding. 

"If  larger  dogs  are  desired  and  required  for  work 
which  does  not  suit  our  favorites,  then  let  harriers 


44  Forty  Years  Beagling 

and  foxhounds  perform  it.  That's  what  they  are 
for.  As  to  a  change  of  the  point  scale  of  the  stand- 
ard, a  few  minor  changes  may  be  of  benefit, 
but  I  would  just  as  vigorously  oppose  a  reduction 
of  the  points  given  to  head  qualities  in  the  present 
standard.  There  is  where  you  find  the  character 
and  quality  of  every  breed  and  most  particularly  so 
in  the  little  beagle. 

"The  wonder  of  it  all  to  me  is  that  the  letter  of 
one  man,  with  no  logic  whatever  advanced,  should 
bring  about  a  discussion." 

In  reply  to  an  inquiry  from  Forest  and  Stream 
about  the  subject  of  changing  the  standard,  Mr.  F. 
Kimball,  of  Brockton,  Massachusetts,  says  that 
while  he  is  the  owner  of  one  or  two  oversized  beagles 
he  does  not  advocate  any  change,  and  further  states 
that  if  you  breed  still  larger,  in  a  few  years  some- 
one else  will  want  a  new  standard  to  benefit  some 
other  oversized  dog. 

"Mr.  Phoebus  comes  back,  saying  that  while  he 
may  present  things  more  forcibly  than  elegantly, 
he  has  never  been  affected  by  that  peculiar  and 
terrible  disease  known  as  big  head,  and  bases  his 
arguments  for  the  increase  from  15"  to  16"  on  the 
fact  that  the  smaller  class  of  hounds  was  increased 
from  12  to  13  inches.  And  he  further  states  that 
he  is  not  talking  for  the  Somerset  Beagles,  as  there 


Size  45 

are  but  three  over  15  inches  in  that  kennel  and 
should  the  standard  be  raised  to  16  inches  none  of 
them  would  appear  on  the  bench.  And  he  names 
them  as  follows:  Mist,  15^",  by  Goodwin,  ex 
Rattler;  Ecstacy,  151/2",  by  a  son  of  Tony  Weller, 
and  Lady,  I514",  by  Little  Duke.  And  Mr.  Phoe- 
bus further  suggests  the  possibility  of  a  beagle  trust 
whose  object  is  to  keep  down  the  supply,  as  well  as 
to  retard  the  advancement  of  the  fitting  of  the  dog 
for  the  conditions  which  the  nature  of  the  grounds 
of  this  country  requires,  as  compared  with  pack 
hunting  in  the  older  countries. 

"He  continues  in  regard  to  field  trials  when  he 
states,  'I  have  known  one  man  to  say  there  are  too 
many  classes  at  field  trials.'  In  reviewing  the  re- 
port of  those  trials  he  should  have  said:  *There  are 
too  many  entries.'  Why  does  the  gentleman  say, 
*If  we  commence  to  alter  the  standard,'  etc.,  when 
the  change  has  already  taken  place?  Simply  this: 
Dogs  which  could  not  win  in  the  15"  class  are  now 
prominent  winners  in  the  13"  class,  since  that  was 
changed  from  12  inches.  Now  there  are  dogs  in- 
eligible to  the  larger  class  by  reason  of  %  to  % 
inch,  that  if  this  change  was  made,  would  come  in 
and  make  us  all  weep.  The  fact  that  this  class  is 
kept  at  15  inches  is  an  injustice  to  many  owners. 

"As  to  the  progeny  of  the  large  dogs  exceeding 


46  Forty  Years  Beagling 

a  new  standard,  I'll  say  no!  There  is  a  limit  at 
which  an  increase  of  size  will  and  does  stop,  and 
when  that  hmit  is  reached  we  have  a  uniformity  in 
conformation  which  can  not  or  never  has  been 
secured  by  breeding  from  dwarfs  and  culls.  Can 
the  foxhound  be  made  or  grown  large  by  breeding 
from  the  largest?  The  same  applies  to  the  blood- 
hound. Select  any  foxhound  or  bloodhound  which 
has  been  from  some  cause  stunted.  Should  it  be  a 
female  it  will  produce  back  to  the  original  size  of 
its  kind,  or  if  a  male,  its  progeny  will  conform  in 
size  to  its  breed. 

"I  have  bred  14%-inch  beagle  dogs  to  15^-inch 
beagle  bitches  and  in  no  instance  has  the  produce 
of  any  of  them  exceeded  an  average  of  the  sire  and 
dam,  not  once,  but  many  times.  On  the  other  hand, 
I  have  bred  13  to  13l/2-inch  dogs  to  like  bitches 
and  seven-tenths  of  the  produce  exceeded  either 
sire  or  dam.  Possibly  I  could  have  prevented  it  by 
stinting  food,  etc.,  in  puppyhood,  but  that  is  cruelty 
to  animals  and  against  principle.  Let  us  take  one 
instance  and  we  can  find  many.  Damper,  owned 
by  Mr.  Crane,  of  Dorset,  England,  was  9  inches 
high,  his  son  Barrister  was  a  10-inch  dog,  whose 
son  Marchboy  was  11  inches;  another  remove  and 
we  have  Bannerman,  11%  inches;  still  another  re- 
move brings  Boyal  Kreuger,   12%  inches,  while 


Size  47 

Ralph  W.,  by  Royal  Kreuger,  was  disqualified  at 
New  York  for  being  over  15  inches.  I'll  guarantee 
that  Ralph  W.'s  progeny  did  not  follow  the  course 
of  his  predecessors  and  add  another  inch  to  their 
stature.  The  limit  of  the  breed  had  been  reached 
in  him,  as  an  individual,  and  would  remain  approxi- 
mating his  measurement. 

"There  are  scores  of  this  kind  that  do  not  appear 
at  the  shows  for  the  same  reason.  They  are  purely 
bred  beagles  in  every  sense  of  the  word;  all  gen- 
erally field  dogs  of  high  order  and  fit  to  ornament 
the  beagle  ring  at  any  kennel  club  show.  It  is  such 
dogs  that  I  want  to  see  have  the  privilege  of  com- 
peting for  the  prizes  both  on  the  bench  and  at  the 
field  trials,  and  I  am  not  alone  by  any  manner  of 
means  in  this  matter.  It  has  been  talked  of  by 
many,  and  no  doubt  would  have  been  discussed  at 
the  meeting  of  the  Beagle  Club  at  Boston  during 
the  show,  but  as  I  happened  to  be  unable  to  attend 
said  meeting,  and  sent  a  letter  hastily  written,  bear- 
ing on  the  subject,  it  was  deemed  that  the  embody- 
ing of  that  letter  in  the  report  would  be  sufiicient 
to  introduce  it  to  the  general  members  of  the 
club." 

Next  comes  Mr.  William  Edwards  of  East 
Moriches,  Long  Island,  who  thinks  that  "Phoebus" 
has  put  his  suggestions  in  good  shape,  yet  while 


48  Forty  Years  Beagling 

agreeing  with  him,  thinks  that  there  must  have 
been  some  merit  in  his  suggestion  for  the  proposed 
change,  else  the  National  Beagle  Club  would  not 
have  ordered  the  letter  printed.  He  says :  "I  want 
to  tell  Mr.  Kreuger  that  men's  opinions  undergo 
changes.  ^Vhile  I  have  gone  from  the  little  fellows 
in  beagles  to  the  larger  class,  he  has  dropped  from 
the  upper  to  the  lower  class,  and  I  doubt  if  among 
his  little  ones  he  can  find  one  that  equals  his  Racer, 
by  Rally  ex  Lill.  I  esteemed  him  the  superior  to 
his  Cameron's  Racket  in  everything  aside  from 
head.  These  were  both  sizable  dogs,  and  if  I  am 
not  mistaken,  Racer  was  slightly  over  the  present 
standard,  yet  he  was  a  dog  of  great  substance, 
being  muscular  and  competent  to  drive  all  day; 
but  today  Mr.  Kreuger  would  have  to  call  him  a 
'weed.'  I  know  that  15-inch  dogs  properly  mated 
to  like  bitches  produce  like  themselves,  but  12  and 
13-inch  pairs  often  produce  much  larger  than  their 
kind. 

"Should  the  standard  be  raised  an  inch?  Yes. 
Why?  Because  there  seems  to  be  and  is  a  certain 
height  to  which  these  dogs  grow,  and  the  very  best 
of  them,  both  for  looks  and  work,  are  from  14% 
to  I5I/2  inches,  with  the  preference  for  quality  in 
favor  of  the  larger  ones.  Then  if  such  is  the  case 
why  should  the  club  keep  these  dogs  out  of  events 


Size  49 

when  they  are  competent  to  do  better  work  and 
more  of  it,  than  such  as  are  admitted  to  these  events 
on  account  of  the  present  fixed  measurement? 

"You  cannot  obhterate  the  type  by  any  rule  of 
measurement;  a  beagle  differs  from  a  harrier  as 
much  as  a  foxhound  differs  from  a  bloodhound,  and 
size  has  nothing  to  do  with  it.  Why  are  neither  of 
the  others  required  to  be  so  high  or  so  low?  Some 
dogs  are  classed  by  weight,  why  not  these? 

"I  am  sure  much  could  be  added  to  the  apprecia- 
tion of  beagles  if  they  were  bred  truly  in  accordance 
with  natural  laws,  and  not  'pinched'  and  starved  to 
have  a  pretty  head  and  no  substance.  My  dogs  are 
all  15  and  15^/2  hiches,  and  I  know  they  are  good 
ones,  and  can  sicken  the  field  trial  and  bench  show 
winners  in  a  five-days'  himt.  These  dogs  are  not 
registered,  but  they  trace  their  ancestral  lines  back 
to  the  old  Rowetts.  If  this  proposition  goes 
through  I  shall  show  them,  if  not  I  shall  not  change 
them  for  smaller.  They  are  full-blooded  beagles 
bred  for  work  in  the  field,  nourished  and  pushed 
when  young  for  bone  and  muscle,  as  all  young  stock 
should  be  to  assure  proper  strength  and  develop- 
ment when  matui^ed.  There  is  but  one  thing  that 
surprises  me  in  this  discussion,  and  I  have  followed 
it  closely,  and  that  is,  that  a  man  of  Mr.  Kreuger's 
former  standing  and  prestige   as   a  beagle   man 


50  Forty  Years  Beagling 

should  disapprove  of  the  efforts  for  the  advance- 
ment and  improvement  of  this  breed  of  dogs,  to 
say  nothing  of  offering  rabbit  dogs  for  from  $5.00 
to  $8.00,  when  it  is  well  Imown  that  a  beagle  can 
not  be  raised  to  be  a  qualified  hunter  for  less  than 
$20.00." 

H.  Gardner  Nichols  of  Cambridge,  Massachu- 
setts, follows  with  his  reasons  for  not  wanting  to 
change  the  standard,  claiming  inadequate  reasons 
have  been  advanced  for  such  a  change,  yet  admits 
that  twenty-five  years  before  this  time  the  beagles 
were  larger  and  had  been  bred  down  to  the  present 
standard  of  size,  and  is  glad  to  see  that  the  majority 
of  beaglers  do  not  favor  such  a  change  as  has  been 
suggested. 

Mr.  W.  S.  Clark  favors  the  change  and  takes  up 
the  cudgels  in  defense  of  Phoebus,  stating  that  he 
knows  that  Mr.  Phoebus' s  arguments  were  not  ad- 
vanced to  favor  his  own  hounds.  Then  Mr.  F.  W. 
Chapman,  of  Melrose,  Massachusetts,  gets  in  the 
game  with  his  arguments  in  favor  of  not  changing 
the  standard  and  refers  to  an  18-inch  beagle  he 
knew  of  which  was  a  dog  by  a  son  of  General  Row- 
ett's  Old  Lee,  out  of  a  half  sister  of  Frank  Forest, 
and  refers  to  beagles  in  England  which  run  from 
16  to  19  inches. 

"Bradley"   then  hunts   up   the   growth   of   the 


Size  51 

hounds  which  Mr.  Phoebus  had  referred  to  and 
finds  that  this  hound  was  at  that  time  17l/^  inches, 
sired  one  htter  out  of  a  14-inch  bitch,  that  all  the 
litter  except  one  had  died  and  that  the  sole  survivor 
at  eight  months  of  age  had  attained  a  height  of 
161/2  inches  when  he  was  killed  by  a  railroad  train. 

And  then  comes  a  letter  from  Mr.  L.  H.  Twad- 
ell  of  West  Philadelphia,  Pennsylvania,  dated  June 
30th,  1892,  which  gives  the  history  of  the  formation 
of  the  standard.  "As  my  name  has  frequently 
appeared  of  late  in  the  discussion  of  the  height 
question  in  the  beagle  standard,  I  feel  that  a  state- 
ment of  some  of  the  reasons  for  a  rigid  limit  might 
be  proper  just  at  this  time. 

"When  the  Beagle  Club  was  first  contemplated, 
W.  H.  Ashburner  called  on  me  to  confer  as  to  its 
feasibility.  We  decided  that  it  was  first  of  all 
necessary  to  enlist  the  cooperation  of  the  few  beagle 
breeders  then  in  the  country,  and  I  will  here  re- 
mark, 'en  passant,'  that  to  Mr.  Ashburner  the 
beagle  men  of  today  must  award  the  credit  of  hav- 
ing greatly  assisted  in  giving  the  breed  its  present 
prominence.  There  was  a  lot  of  correspondence 
done,  and  with  sportsmen  living  wide  apart  and 
details  innumerable  necessary  to  the  organization 
of  the  club,  all  of  which  he  painstakingly  worked 
out. 


52  Forty  Years  Beagling 

"In  the  conference  above  spoken  of  it  was 
deemed  imperative  to  have  a  standard  of  excellence, 
General  Rowett,  N.  Elmore  and  myself  were  ap- 
pointed to  draft  it.  General  Rowett  was  just  at 
that  time  very  much  occupied  with  his  horse  inter- 
ests, and  asked  me  to  formulate  a  scale  of  points 
and  submit  for  revision  if  required.  Mr.  Elmore 
acquiesced,  and  I  proceeded  with  the  work.  When 
finished  it  met  with  the  entire  approval  of  my  col- 
leagues; no  change  whatever  being  suggested  by 
either  gentlemen,  so  whatever  mistake  we  have 
made  'on  our  heads  be  it.' 

"And  now  the  reason  for  fixing  the  limit  at  15 
inches.  In  the  old  days  anything  a  httle  smaller 
than  a  foxhound  was  by  courtesy  called  a  beagle; 
if  a  pure-bred  beagle  dog  was  accessible  he  was 
crossed  on  small  foxhound  bitches,  and  if  at  all  pre- 
potent the  produce  showed  enough  beagle  character 
barring  size,  to  pass  muster  and  satisfy  their  own- 
ers. The  result  of  this  shpshod,  ignorant  method 
was  that  the  country  was  filled  with  mongrel  non- 
descripts posing  as  beagles;  witness  our  earlier 
bench  shows.  It  was  to  strike  at  the  root  of  this 
evil  and  rescue  the  breed  from  utter  extinction  that 
I  decided  to  draw  the  line  rigidly  fixed  in  the  stand- 
ard, knowing  that  the  little  thoroughbred  could  not 
be  bred  from  the  big  mongrel,  and  that  those  who 


Size  53 

wanted  the  true  beagle  would  hark  back  to  the 
pure  source  to  get  him. 

"I  will  not  go  into  an  extended  argument.  The 
subject  has  been  ably  and  thoroughly  handled  by 
Messrs.  Chapman,  Ashbui-ner  and  'Bradley'  and 
others,  and  little  is  left  to  say.  The  claims  of  the 
advocates  of  the  larger  dog — ^that  he  is  more  endur- 
ing— should,  however,  be  answered. 

"I  grant  that  if  a  mixed  pack,  i.e.,  one  say  of 
16-inch  and  12-  or  13-inch  dogs  are  run  together, 
the  small  dogs  will  be  at  a  disadvantage,  for  the 
reason  that  the  larger  dogs,  from  their  greater 
speed  and  stride  keep  the  little  ones  on  the  keen 
jump  to  stay  with  them.  This  being  above  their 
rating  gait,  of  course  exhausts  and  tires  them  in  a 
protracted  hunt.  The  remedy  is  simply  to  assort 
the  pack  to  as  nearly  one  size  as  possible  and  weed 
out  the  overgrown  dogs.  Thus  selected  the  small 
dogs  will  be  found  to  afford  the  best  sport  and 
prove  the  most  kilhng  pack,  giving  many  more 
chances  to  the  gun,  as  the  rabbit  stays  longer  above 
ground  than  if  rushed  at  foxhound  speed  by  beagles 
of  nearly  foxhound  size. 

"In  conclusion  I  must  thank  the  Forest  and 
Stream  in  the  name  of  the  beagle  fraternity;  it  has 
fostered  our  interests  as  no  other  sportsman's  paper 
in  the  country  had,  giving  us  a  medium  to  ventilate 


54  Forty  Years  Beagling 


our  pet  theories  and  hobbies  relative  to  the  breed, 
and  a  chance  to  interchange  ideas,  which  must 
prove  educators  even  to  the  'man  who  knows  it 
all.'  " 

At  this  time  Mr.  Wm.  H.  Childs  in  taking  up 
the  question  of  the  change  in  the  standard  in  the 
Fanciers  Journal,  says  that  aside  from  the  little 
prospect  of  changing  from  15  to  16  inches,  in  which 
he  is  pleased,  that  the  judges  and  breeders  have 
lost  sight  of  the  fact  that  the  length  of  back  and 
loin  is  not  adhered  to  as  called  for  in  the  standard. 
Then  comes  Mr.  Zimmer  under  the  nom  de 
plume  of  D.  E.  B.  O'Nair  in  the  Fancier  s  Jour- 
nal, and  advocates  two  different  standards,  one 
for  the  bench  show  beagle  and  one  for  the  field 
trial  beagle.  There  is  no  date  attached  to  this  chp- 
ping,  but  its  importance  from  such  an  authority 
warrants  saying  that  the  next  article  is  dated 
March  16th,  1893. 

Mr.  Bradford  S.  Turpin  in  the  same  sporting 
paper  among  other  things  says:  "The  statement 
in  Mr.  Phoebus's  letter  which  particularly  inter- 
ested me  was  the  rapid  increase  in  size  from 
Damper  10  inches,  to  Ralph  W.  And  referring 
to  the  eight-months'  old  puppy  who  went  to  16% 
inches  at  this  age,  and  which  was  growing  fast  at 
the  time  he  was  killed,  asks  what  could  be  a  better 


Size  55 

argument  to  prove  that  beagles  can  easily  be  bred 
to  the  size  of  foxhounds,  than  the  increase  in  height 
from  Damper  to  this  eight-months'  old  16l/^-inch 
pup? 


CHAPTER    IV 


PROGENY 


WITH  the  question  at  this  time  arising 
about  the  breeding  of  different  size 
hounds  and  the  effect  of  dam  and  sire 
upon  their  progeny,  it  seems  appropriate  to  insert 
the  wonderfully  interesting  article  by  Mr.  Everett 
Millais  upon  the  influence  of  a  previous  sire,  written 
at  the  request  of  the  editor  of  the  Fancier's  Jour- 
nal for  the  holiday  number,  as  follows: 

"In  the  fall  of  last  year  you  did  me  the  honor 
of  asking  me  to  contribute  an  article  to  your  then 
forthcoming  Christmas  number,  and  while  at  the 
time  I  was  unable  to  accede  to  your  wishes,  which 
on  a  future  occasion  I  trust  to  comply  with,  I  was 
sufficiently  aware  of  an  article  which  was  about 
to  appear  in  your  number  to  interest  me  highly 
in  it. 

"I  had  been  informed  by  a  friend  in  America 
that  an  article  was  about  to  appear  on  the  question 

of  the  influence  of  a  previous  sire,  and  hearing  who 

56 


Progeny  57 


the  author  was,  and  feeling  that  it  might  help  him 
to  support  his  views  if  he  had  the  latest  scientific 
views  on  the  subject  before  him,  I  took  the  liberty 
of  penning  him  the  article  which  appeared  in  my 
name  under  that  of  Mr.  Wade's. 

"Now,  far  be  it  from  me  to  claim  for  myself  the 
honor  of  having  brought  into  the  world  the  theory 
which  I  advanced  in  that  communication  as  the 
answer  to  the  oft-asked  question,  how  do  you  ac- 
count for  the  phenomenon?  Who  put  forward  the 
theory,  or  how  it  first  started,  I  am  unable  to  say, 
but  I  found  on  talking  the  matter  over  with  some 
of  our  most  noted  physiologists  and  biologists  that 
the  theory  I  put  forward  was  not  only  the  general 
belief  as  to  the  cause  of  the  phenomenon  but  in  their 
opinion  the  only  possible  answer  to  the  question. 

"It  will  therefore  be  seen  that  the  theory  among 
scientific  men  is  a  general  one,  and  where  I  have 
added  to  it  is  to  be  found  in  the  views  I  express 
when  I  observe  that  the  modification  to  be  found 
in  the  produce  of  a  subsequent  sire  is  generally  in 
that  portion  of  the  animal  frame  which  is  derived 
from  the  epiblast.  I  admit,  howe\^r,  that  it  is  also 
to  be  noted  in  the  other  portions  of  the  blastoderm. 

"Following  the  publication  of  your  Christmas 
number,  on  the  2nd  of  January,  there  appeared  in 
your  columns  a  reply  to  it  from  the  pen  of  Dr. 


58  Forty  Years  Beagling 

Mills,  of  Montreal,  but  not  being  in  possession  of 
your  numbers  I  was  unable  at  the  time  to  reply  to 
him  except  on  two  points  which  struck  me  when  I 
glanced  over  his  letter. 

"These  will  be  found  in  your  issue  of  February 
6th  (1893),  accordingly  I  need  not  again  refer  to 
them,  except  to  say  that  in  my  letter  I  promised  to 
reply  to  Dr.  Mills,  and  I  would  ask  you,  sir,  now 
that  your  issues  from  Christmas  to  date  are  at  hand, 
to  do  me  the  courtesy  of  accepting  this  communica- 
tion as  my  promised  reply. 

"Let  us  for  a  moment  forget  that  there  is  any 
such  thing  as  influence  of  a  previous  sire,  which  we 
will  admit.  Let  us  examine  the  influence  of  a 
previous  sire  on  his  own  offspring.  In  doing  so 
would  it  not  be  advisable  to  take  two  animals  of 
the  same  family,  strain  or  variety,  since  the  likeness 
of  the  produce  to  the  sire  or  dam  might  be  argued 
on  the  ground  of  selection,  heredity  or  atavism. 
Here,  however,  I  might  remark  that  should  we  do 
so,  and  could  we  take  haphazard  100  puppies  of 
any  breed,  the  great  majority  would  have  a  greater 
resemblance  to  the  sire  than  to  the  dam. 

"Let  us,  however,  take  a  collie  and  a  pointer 
bitch,  two  different  breeds,  and  compare  the  prog- 
eny, first  with  the  dam,  and  then  with  the  sire. 
It  requires  but  a  momentary  glance  if  we  were 


Progeny  59 


asked  to  look  at  these  puppies  to  see  at  once  that 
they  are  mongrels,  for  they  bear  the  bar  sinister  on 
their  backs,  as  it  were. 

"I  would  ask  Dr.  Mills,  or  any  competent  judge 
of  type,  where  this  bar  sinister  is  to  be  seen,  even 
in  puppies  of  a  day  old?  We  would  not  see  it  in 
the  structure,  we  could  not  if  we  were  to  examine 
the  internal  organs  see  anything  different  from 
pure-bred  puppies  of  a  similar  age,  but  we  would 
see  it  in  the  coat,  in  that  portion  known  as  the  skin 
and  its  appendages,  in  that  portion  of  the  frame 
which  is  derived  from  the  epiblast. 

"If  we  were  to  see  them  in  adult  age  their  bas- 
tardy would  be  still  more  apparent,  and  I  again 
would  ask  Dr.  Mills  which  parent  they  would  most 
resemble.  If  we  take  the  dam,  they  would  be  found 
with  a  thick  coat,  semi-prick  ears,  and  if  the  sire 
were  wall-eyed  it  would  not  unlikely  be  seen  in 
them,  too.  As  to  figure,  they  would  more  resemble 
the  wild  dog  than  the  pointer.  If  we  compare  them 
with  the  sire,  there  would  be  no  hesitation  in  at 
once  coming  to  the  conclusion  that  they  may  take 
more  after  him  than  the  dam.  What  does  this 
teach  us?  Nothing  more  than  what  careful  breed- 
ers and  physiologists  have  remarked  for  years  in  all 
varieties  of  life,  viz.,  'from  the  male  parent  is  main- 
ly derived  the  external  structure,  configuration  and 


60  Forty  Years  Beagling 

outward  characteristics.' — James  Howard  on  the 
Physiology  of  Horse  Breeding,  1878. 

*'Dr.  Mills  will  think,  I  allow,  that  this  corre- 
sponds to  the  epiblast,  consequently  we  may  say 
that  as  a  general  rule  the  type  of  animal  is  derived 
from  that  part  of  the  blastoderm,  and  it  is  the  epi- 
blast over  which  the  male  parent  has  the  greater 
influence.  Now  let  us  go  a  step  further  and  assume 
that  the  pointer  bitch  at  her  next  heat  is  carefully 
guarded  from  forming  another  mesalliance  and  in 
due  time  has  a  litter  to  a  pure-bred  pointer.  Let  us 
also  assume  that  two  puppies  in  the  litter  show 
the  influence  of  the  previous  sire,  and  that  the 
rest  resemble  the  putative  male  parent,  i.e.,  the 
pointer. 

"Where  do  those  two,  which  under  normal  cir- 
cumstances should  have  been  born  typical  pointers, 
show  that  they  were  under  the  influence  of  the 
previous  sire?  Is  it  not  in  the  coat,  and  in  a  less 
degree  in  the  structure,  speaking  from  an  ana- 
tomical point  of  view?  I  think  it  will  be  allowed 
that  it  is  so,  and  furthermore,  that  the  variation 
from  pointer  type  to  that  of  collie  consists  in  the 
re-occurrence  of  a  physiological  phenomenon  which 
I  have  already  noted,  viz.,  that  from  the  male  par- 
ent is  derived  the  external  structure,  etc.,  etc.  Now 
with  this  fact  in  our  minds,  it  is  absolutely  impos- 


Progeny  61 


sible  that  the  putative  sire  (the  pointer)  could  have 
in  reality  been  the  sire  which  influenced  his  progeny 
to  approach  collie  type.  In  other  words,  that  it 
was  the  collie  who  fertilizes  the  epiblastic  portion 
of  the  ova  from  which  these  two  puppies  sprang. 

"It  is,  however,  apparent  that  the  pointer  was 
the  sire  of  the  rest  of  the  litter,  and  this  being  the 
case  the  question  is,  how  can  we  account  for  this 
extraordinary  and  unlooked  for  occurrence?  It  is 
to  this  point  I  would  draw  the  attention  of  your 
readers,  and  particularly  Dr.  Mills,  for  while  I, 
as  I  understand  these  matters,  point  out  that  it  is 
due  to  an  abnormal  condition  of  the  bitch  which 
allows  spermatozoa  of  the  previous  sire  to  enter 
immature  ova  into  the  ovary  and  particularly 
fertilize  these  ova,  which  require  a  second  fertiliza- 
tion when  mature  to  cause  complete  fertilization. 
Dr.  Mills,  on  his  part  scouts  such  a  hypothesis,  and 
argues  that  it  is  due  to  an  abnormal  condition  of 
the  bitch,  brought  about  by  metabolism  during  the 
placental  connection  of  her  previous  litter  whilst 
in  utero.  In  other  words.  Dr.  Mills  denies  the 
possibility  of  the  first  sire  having  anything  to  do 
with  the  produce  of  the  second,  or  that  the  first  can 
in  any  way  fertilize  ova  which  will  become  mature 
at  a  second  heat,  and  gives  it  as  his  opinion  that  we 
must  look  for  the  causa  causans  of  this  singular 


62  Forty  Years  Beagling 

phenomenon,  in  what  is  nothing  more  or  less  than 
direct  infection  of  the  hitch  thi'ough  the  agency  of 
a  third  party,  viz.,  the  produce  of  her  liaison  with 
the  cohie  dog. 

"That  this  is  llie  difference  hetween  Dr.  Mills 
and  myself  is  evidenced  hy  his  letter  of  February 
27,  for  while  he  admits  the  view  I  exi)resse{l  on 
the  Gth  of  February,  viz.,  that  the  phenomenon  is 
hardly  common,  whicli  amoimts  to  a  statement  that 
it  is  abnormal,  mid  be  iubiiits  tlie  fact  it  is  possible 
for  the  ova  of  one  breed  of  rab})it  to  be  taken  from 
the  real  dam  and  incu])ated  by  another  without  any 
change  of  type.  He  further  remarks:  'About  the 
only  point  on  which  Mr.  Millais  and  myself  may 
possibly  really  differ  is  this:  It  is  possible  for  the 
foetal  connection  to  l)e  maintained  without  the 
mother  being  affected  by  the  foetal  blood  and  meta- 
bolism. As  I  understand  these  relations  I  am 
bound  to  answer  no,  and  if  this  be  correct  then  the 
dam  may  in  consequence  influence  the  future  off- 
spring.' It  will  thus  be  seen  what  Dr.  Mills'  exact 
views  are,  and  in  placing  them  again  before  your 
readers  may  I,  with  all  due  deference  to  Dr.  Mills, 
point  out  that  if  it  were  possible  for  the  foetal  con- 
nection to  be  maintained  without  the  mother  being 
affected  by  the  foetal  blood  and  metabolism,  which 
Dr.  Mills  most  explicitly  explains  he  cannot  be- 


Progeny  63 


lieve,  then  every  bitch  in  this  world,  according  to 
Dr.  iNIills,  which  had  once  formed  an  alhance  with 
a  dog  of  differing  breed,  would  show  the  influence 
of  this  mesalliance  in  her  future  litters,  and  instead 
of  being  an  uncommon  occurrence  we  should  look 
upon  a  bitch  that  did  not  conform  to  Dr.  Mills' 
view  as  abnormal.  In  other  words,  in  his  letter  of 
February  27  Dr.  iMills  shows  that  I  am  right  in 
saying  that  the  occurrence  is  uncommon,  and  in  the 
same  letter  says  that  in  according  to  how  he  under- 
stands foetal  connection  and  metabolism,  it  must 
be  very  common. 

"In  what  light  can  we  accept  Dr.  ^Mills'  state- 
ments when  we  take  into  consideration  the  fact  that 
Mr.  Wade  can  only  get  one  or  two  cases  of  influ- 
ence in  bitches  which  have  formed  mesalliances,  and 
a  very  large  number  which  have  not,  a  number 
which  I  could  personally  add  to.  In  brief.  Dr. 
Mills  allows  the  fact  that  influence  is  due  to  an  ab- 
normal condition  of  the  bitch.  I  allow  that  it  is 
due  to  the  same  cause,  whilst  we  have  further  direct 
proof  from  Mr.  Wade  that  the  phenomenon  is  the 
rare  occurrence,  and  not  the  rule,  i.e.,  that  it  is 
abnormal.  Thus  while  we  all  agree  that  abnormal- 
ity is  at  the  root  of  the  phenomenon,  we  disagree. 
Dr.  Mills  and  I,  hopelessly  as  to  the  cause  of  a 
bitch  becoming  abnormal,  I  putting  it  down  to  a 


64  Forty  Years  Beagling 

natural  defect,  Dr.  Mills  to  what  amounts  to  in- 
fection. 

"Having  now,  I  trust,  clearly  paved  the  way  for 
an  examination  of  Dr.  Mills'  evidence  for  his  side 
of  the  question,  and  my  own,  I  propose  to  go  more 
deeply  into  the  matter.  Let  us  take  Dr.  Mills  first. 
The  hypothesis  on  which  Dr.  Mills  combats  my 
views  is  that  during  the  placental  connection  of  the 
foetus,  begot  by  mesalliance,  the  mother  becomes 
affected  by  the  foetal  blood  and  metabolism.  Your 
readers  are  all  aware  what  is  meant  by  foetal  blood, 
but  to  some  the  word  metabolism  may  prove  a 
stumbhng  block.  I  shall  therefore  explain  it,  as  in 
what  I  am  about  to  say,  it  will  have  occasionally  to 
be  used. 

"Dr.  Mills  explains  the  word  as  'cell  life,'  which 
hardly  in  my  opinion  gives  its  English  synonym, 
and  which  hardly  explains  itself;  for  we  find  that 
metabolism  is  of  two  kinds,  viz.,  anabolism  and 
katabolism,  or  a  building  up  and  a  breaking  down, 
thus  the  cell  life  which  goes  on  during  foetal  life, 
is  principally  of  an  anabolic  nature.  In  youth  it  is 
also  anabolic  with  some  katabolism,  at  puberty  it  is 
pretty  evenly  balanced  and  in  old  age  it  becomes 
katabolic.  Let  us  therefore  take  the  metabolism 
which  goes  on  in  the  non-pregnant  female  at  pu- 
berty.    Cell  Hfe  is  dependent  on  food,  just  as  the 


Progeny  65 


complex  mass  of  cells  known  as  a  living  creature 
is,  and  it  would  be  advisable  to  observe  what  food 
consists  of,  how  it  reaches  cell  life  and  other  matters 
of  interest.  Food  is  of  two  kinds,  viz.,  what  we 
call  food  in  the  common  acceptance  of  the  word, 
and  air.  The  former  going  down  the  alimentary- 
tract,  the  latter  the  respiratory.  In  case  of  the 
former,  it  passes  through  various  mechanical  and 
digestive  processes  until  it  reaches  the  lesser  intes- 
tines, where  the  bulk  of  it  is  absorbed,  part  of  which 
is  thrown  directly  into  the  blood,  and  part  into  the 
same  medium  after  passing  through  the  liver. 
What  is  not  absorbed  during  the  passage  through 
the  body  is  thrown  out  at  the  vent. 

"In  the  case  of  air,  it  passes  to  the  lungs,  where 
it  enters  fine  blood  vessels  and  is  carried  at  once  by 
the  red  corpuscles  of  the  blood  to  its  destination. 
Thus  we  find  that  the  blood  is  the  medium  of  con- 
veyance of  nutrition  to  the  cells  of  the  body  whereby 
anabolism  is  affected.  The  same  medium,  how- 
ever, acts  as  dustman  to  the  body,  for  we  find  that 
it  carries  away  the  debris  of  cell  life  brought  about 
by  anabohc  changes,  to  the  kidneys  and  the  skin 
where  they  are  expelled  from  the  body.  This  being 
the  case,  the  metabolism  which  goes  on  in  the  non- 
pregnant female  is  obviously  limited  to  the  renewal 
of  cells  and  the  carting  away  of  broken  down  ones. 


66  Forty  Years  Beagling 

"Now  let  us  take  the  metabolism  of  the  foetus. 
The  foetus  in  its  earliest  stage  is  one  single  cell 
which  was  a  product  of  the  ovarian  tissue  in  which 
starts  life  on  its  own  account  as  a  separate  organiza- 
tion, directly  it  is  fertilized  by  coalescence  with  the 
male  cell  the  spermatozoon  is  generally  said  to  take 
place  in  the  fallopian  tube  or  uterus  (that  is  under 
normal  conditions).  This  fertilization,  however, 
may  take  place  in  the  ovary,  and  it  immediately 
descends  the  fallopian  tube  to  the  uterus'  commenc- 
ing its  anabolism  at  the  expense  of  its  own  contents. 
This  becomes  quickly  used  up,  and  it  has  then  to 
search  for  more  food,  and  it  affects  its  object  by 
throwing  out  a  root  which  passes  into  the  sinuses 
in  the  uterine  wall. 

"I  need  not  here  describe  the  placental  connec- 
tion, for  Dr.  Mills  has  already  done  so.  Suffice  it 
for  me  to  state  that  the  foetus  elaborates  its  own 
blood  supply  and  its  own  organism  at  the  expense 
of  the  food  it  abstracts  from  its  dam.  I  may,  how- 
ever, point  out  that  its  blood  stream  is  essentially 
different  from  that  of  the  dam,  the  two  never  be- 
coming coalesced.  During  its  uterine  hfe,  the 
foetus  grows  at  a  very  rapid  rate,  its  metabolism 
being  of  an  anabolic  nature,  thus  as  far  as  food  in 
the   common    acceptation    of   the    word,    there    is 


Progeny  67 


scarcely  a  vestige  of  katabolism,  all  going  to  build 
up  the  rapidly  growing  creature. 

"With  regard  to  air,  however,  the  fresh  supply 
is  taken  up  by  the  root,  from  the  same  source  as  the 
food,  and  as  it  is  used  up  it  nmst  be  returned,  con- 
sequently the  katabolism  which  takes  place  in  foetal 
cell  life  is  gauged  by  the  return  of  COj.  This  is 
the  metabolism  which  goes  on  in  the  foetus.  Xow 
let  us  take  the  metabolism  in  the  pregnant  female. 
She  has  naturally  the  same  duties  to  perform  as  she 
had  as  regards  herself  when  she  was  non-pregnant, 
and  in  addition  she  has  to  convey  away  through  her 
blood  to  her  lungs  the  CO2  of  the  foetus.  What 
debris,  too,  of  cell  life  from  the  foetus  that  is  passed 
to  her  blood,  she  would  naturally  excrete  by  her 
kidneys.  Consequently  the  whole  difference  as  far 
as  metabolism  is  concerned  in  the  pregnant  female 
is  that  she  has  to  submit  to  doing  double  duty,  i.e., 
allow  her  foetus  to  absorb  its  food  from  her,  and 
convey  away  what  it  rejects. 

"Xow  as  this  is  the  metabolism  which  goes  on  in 
the  non-pregnant  female,  in  the  foetus,  and  the 
pregnant  female,  I  would  ask  Dr.  !Mills  to  say  what 
the  exact  metabolic  change  is  that  occurs  in  the 
female,  and  what  it  is  that  she  receives  from  the 
foetus  that  causes  this  change.  Dr.  INIills  does  not 
intend  us  to  believe,  so  I  understand  his  views,  that 


68  Forty  Years  Beagling 

something  which  the  foetus  passes  to  its  dam  in  a 
previous  pregnancy  causes  a  metabolic  change  in 
its  power  of  assimilating  food,  but  rather  that  the 
something  causes  a  variation  in  the  nature  of  its 
cells,  which  cells,  when  in  a  second  pregnancy, 
cause  a  variation  in  the  type  of  one  or  more  of  her 
forthcoming  offspring.  In  one  of  his  letters  Dr. 
Mills  instances  the  varying  disposition  of  cells  by 
showing  that  while  some  dogs  die  under  distemper, 
others  appear  immune  to  the  disease  though  living 
with  their  moribund  brothers  and  sisters.  I  would 
in  no  wise  contradict  Dr.  Mills  on  this  point,  at  t]^ 
same  time  Dr.  Mills  will  be  the  first  to  allow  that 
in  this  case  the  variation  in  the  cells  is  a  physiolog- 
ical differentiation  in  the  power  of  the  cells  to  with- 
stand a  microbic  product  of  a  toxic  nature,  and  that 
immunity  is  not  arrived  at  by  variation  in  form. 

"Again,  if  we  take  a  well-known  disease  which 
does  cause  variation  and  effects  in  the  offspring  to 
that  of  the  parents,  we  have  one  at  hand  in  syphilis. 
In  this  disease,  it  is  perfectly  possible,  and  not  an 
infrequent  occurrence,  that  while  a  man  is  suffi- 
ciently recovered  as  to  be  incapable  of  infecting  his 
wife  while  non-pregnant,  he  can  do  so  through  her 
foetus  when  she  does  become  pregnant.  The  result 
of  this  is  that  the  foetus,  which  was  the  agent  of 
infection,  while  itself  being  born  blind,  deaf,  mute, 


Progeny  69 


idiotic,  or  with  some  other  deficiency  in  its  structure, 
renders  its  mother  Hable  to  further  bearing  children 
of  this  character.  Here  we  have  an  instance  of 
malformation  and  defect,  the  result  of  a  toxic  prod- 
uct of  an  infecting  agent  of  a  bacterial  nature,  but 
Dr.  Mills,  I  am  certain,  will  not  go  so  far  as  to 
assert  that  the  variation  of  the  parents  amounts  to 
variation  in  type ;  that  is  to  say.  Dr.  Mills  will  not 
assert  that  the  infecting  agent  will  affect  the  mother 
so  seriously  as  to  cause  her,  a  European,  to  give 
birth  to  a  negro  or  a  child  of  Tartar  type. 

"If  it  were  possible  for  the  foetus  of  the  first  sire 
to  infect  the  system  of  the  dam  so  as  to  cause  her 
to  reproduce  at  a  future  pregnancy  to  another  sire, 
animals  of  the  first  sire's  type,  the  variation  must 
be  accounted  for  by  some  agent  which  causes  varia- 
tion in  the  ova  of  the  dam  long  before  her  access 
to  the  second  sire,  and  this  being  the  case,  it  is  evi- 
dent that  it  is  the  ovary  that  is  at  fault.  But  we 
have  to  remember  that  it  is  the  male  that  gives  type 
to  the  offspring,  and  the  type  in  the  phenomenon 
being  that  of  the  previous  sire  and  not  the  putative 
parent,  we  can  only  come  to  the  conclusion  that  the 
first  sire  in  some  way  has  a  finger  in  the  pie,  or 
accept  the  hitherto  unmentioned  and  impossible 
doctrine  that  the  unborn  foetus  of  the  second  sire 
is  sired  by  the  foetus  of  the  first. 


70  Forty  Years  Beagling 

"This  is  what  Dr.  Mills'  argument  amounts  to, 
for  by  no  influence  can  we  account  for  variation 
in  type,  either  by  foetal  connection  or  metabolism ; 
further,  it  is  only  by  the  male  element  of  a  certain 
type  that  the  same  type,  or  a  variation  towards  it, 
can  be  brought  about.  If  an  instance  in  point  is 
required  to  illustrate  Dr.  Mills'  view,  it  would  be 
as  follows,  my  argument  being  that  what  applies 
to  one  form  of  life  applies  to  all,  viz.,  that  when  the 
impregnated  ovum  leaves  the  ovary  it  is  a  separate 
being,  and  the  sole  difference  between  the  mam- 
malian and  fowl  being  that  the  former  had  to  exist 
for  a  limited  space  as  a  parasite. 

"If  wx  take  the  fowl,  it  is  the  same  as  the  vege- 
table, namely,  it  is  sent  into  the  world  with  a  food 
supply,  which  the  mammalian  being  without  is 
obliged  to  look  for  in  a  special  manner.  This  being 
the  case.  Dr.  Mills'  argument  can  be  thus  illus- 
trated: A  laborer  takes  some  green  cabbage  seed, 
which  has  a  supply  of  food  sufficient  to  keep  it 
alive  until  it  reaches  what  equals  the  uterus,  mother 
earth.  Here  it  at  once  puts  forth  a  root,  the  um- 
bilical cord,  and  from  the  earth  draws  its  food 
supply.  In  due  time  it  appears  above  the  earth, 
it  is  born.  It  then  puts  forth  fresh  roots.  In  other 
words,  it  is  at  first  suckled  and  gi^adually  comes  to 
maturity.    The  following  spring,  the  laborer  sows 


Progeny  71 


red  cabbage  and  to  his  surprise  finds  not  only  red 
cabbage  but  some  green.  His  argument  is  that  the 
green  cabbage  of  the  previous  year  influenced  the 
ground  and  caused  it  the  following  year  to  produce 
green  cabbage  as  well  as  red,  and  he  bases  his  argu- 
ment on  the  fact  that  it  is  impossible  for  the  green 
cabbage  to  have  fertilized  the  ground  with  green 
cabbage  seed  for  he  ate  every  green  cabbage  before 
it  came  to  seed. 

"It  does  not  strike  him  that  this  phenomenon 
might  be  the  outcome  of  some  seeds  lying  dormant 
through  abnormal  circumstances,  such  as  delayed 
vitality  or  that  he  placed  them  too  deep  in  the 
ground.  But  if  he  asked  any  practical  gardener, 
he  would  at  once  be  informed  that  it  is  not  an  un- 
common thing  for  seeds  to  lie  dormant  for  a  year, 
and  if  he  were  a  man  of  an  inquii'ing  nature,  he 
would  learn  before  long  that  in  the  making  of  rail- 
ways a  flora  appeared  in  certain  spots  which  was 
never  known  to  exist  in  the  memory  of  man.  I 
ask  Dr.  Mills  if  he  can  deny  such  a  statement  as 
this,  and  if  it  is  not  a  fact  that,  in  the  sudden  and 
abnormal  appearance  of  such  flora  as  I  allude  to, 
we  have  not  the  answer  to  the  question,  what  is  the 
cause  of  the  phenomenon?  Undoubtedly  we  have, 
for  in  it  we  see  an  instance  of  the  power  of  a  fer- 
tilized ovum  to  lie  dormant  for  vears  under  abnor- 


72  Forty  Years  Beagling 


mal  circumstances,  and  if  this  can  take  place  in  the 
vegetable  Idngdom  why  not  in  the  animal? 

"Dr.  Mills  may  argue  that  there  is  this  differ- 
ence: Mr.  Millais  contends  that  it  requires  a 
second  fertilization  to  cause  an  already  fertilized 
ovum  to  produce  a  foetus.  Dr.  Mills  would  be 
right  in  calhng  attention  to  such  a  difference,  and 
the  reason  I  contend  that  in  the  case  of  the  mam- 
malian dormant  o^oim  a  second  fertilization  is  re- 
quired is  this :  If  a  second  were  not  required  then 
we  could  see  the  strange  anomaly  of  a  bitch  at  her 
second  and  even  third  and  fourth  heat,  and  as  long 
as  such  dormant  but  fertilized  ova  remain  in  her 
ovary,  becoming  pregnant  without  previous  copula- 
tion with  the  second,  third  and  fourth  putative  sires 
of  offsprings  which  were  begot  by  the  first,  a  con- 
dition which  exists  in  some  of  the  fowls. 

"If  her  ova  were  fertilized  and  lay  dormant  and 
she  did  not  conceive  at  a  second  heat  without  the 
attention  of  a  second  male,  the  influence  of  a  previ- 
ous sire  would  at  once  be  palpable  to  the  most 
ignorant  man,  but  as  a  second  fertilization  is  re- 
quired, it  is  owing  to  this  fact  that  men  cannot 
grasp  the  phenomenon  in  its  true  light,  and  it  is 
further  owing  to  this  fact  that  the  produce  so 
affected  do  not  show  quite  so  much  personal  re- 
semblance to  the  first  sire  as  they  otherwise  would. 


Progeny  73 


"Which  of  the  two  theories,  I  would  ask,  is  the 
more  probable,  that  of  influence  through  affection 
by  foetal  blood  and  metabohsm,  or  that  which  is  in 
accordance  with  the  rules  of  nature?  Undoubtedly 
the  latter,  for  the  former  is  supported  by  no  rules 
or  evidence  and  the  latter  by,  if  not  direct,  such  a 
mass  of  circumstantial  and  that  drawn  from  anal- 
ogy, that  it  is  more  than  a  hypothesis ;  it  is  a  chain 
with  a  missing  link." 

This  article  by  Mr.  Millais  would  seem  not  only 
to  give  the  average  beagler  an  insight  into  the 
realms  of  breeding,  but  show  him  what  the  bitch 
undergoes  in  her  nature  wliile  in  season  and  its 
possible  effects  upon  her  ability  in  the  field  at  such 
a  time. 


CHAPTER   V 

BROOD,    BITCH    AND    PUPPIES 

NEXT  comes  an  instructive  article  on  the 
care  of  a  mother  and  her  puppies,  by- 
Gordon  Staples,  the  English  expert,  who 
appeals  to  the  amateur  breeder,  when  he  says: 

"In  what  I  have  now  to  say  on  the  proper 
management  of  mother  and  puppies,  I  desire  to 
appeal  to  the  amateur  breeder  of  dogs,  and  shall 
feel  quite  contented  if  it  simply  commends  itself  to 
those  who  have  bred  dogs  for  many  years.  The 
latter,  indeed,  might  be  able  to  give  me  a  wrinkle 
or  two,  or  exchange  wrinkles  with  me.  Indeed,  it 
is  a  well-known  fact  that  where  every  two  or  three 
dog-breeders  are  gathered  together,  there  is  sure  to 
be  much  kindly  conversation  and  the  exchange  of 
hints,  valuable  and  practical,  and  all  tending  to  the 
same  end,  the  improvement  of  the  breed  of  our 
mutual  friend. 

"Now,  s]3eaking  from  long  experience,  strength- 
ened by  the  smattering  of  science  and  common- 
sense  I  happen  to  possess,  I  believe  if  one  wishes  to 

have  a  healthful  litter  of  puppies  he  must  turn  his 

74 


Brood,  Bitch  and  Puppies  75 


attention  to  the  bitch  he  means  to  breed  from  long 
before  the  sestrum,  or  period,  comes  on.  He  who 
expects  to  get  good  puppies  from  a  mother  who 
herself  is  not  in  the  pink  of  health,  and  in  pure 
blood,  will  get  left.  He'll  have  to  take  a  bottom 
seat,  and  the  htter,  instead  of  bringing  him  comfort 
and  happiness,  will  only  plunge  him  into  a  sea  of 
worry  and  disappointment. 

"Bitches  come  in  season  twice  a  year,  but  it  is 
not  advisable  to  breed  from  one  more  than  once  in 
the  twelve  months.  After  a  visit  to  the  dog,  the 
mother  will  carry  her  progeny  about  63  or  64  days. 
We  cannot  reckon  the  time  exactly.  Much  de- 
pends on  her  health  and  strength,  and  even  mental 
idiosyncrasy.  The  best  time  for  the  visit  is  early 
spring,  as  the  puppies  have  then  all  the  long  sum- 
mer before  them  to  romp  and  get  strong  in. 

"Now,  the  amateur  may  take  my  word  for  it, 
or  that  of  any  one  else  who  knows,  but  there  is  no 
earthly  use  in  breeding  from  a  bitch  who  is  not  well 
up  in  points.  This  is  true,  at  all  events,  if  yoT.' 
desire  to  sell  a  portion  of  your  stock,  and  who  does 
not?  Granting  that  dog  breeding  is  the  grandest 
fad  or  fancy  in  the  world,  I  maintain  no  one  should 
lose  by  his  fancy.  Nor  need  he,  if  he  goes  the  right 
way  to  work.  On  the  other  hand,  if  you  are  breed- 
ing for  some  particular  purpose,  and  care  nothing 


76  Forty  Years  Beagling 

about  show  points,  you  can  follow  your  own  bent. 
Show  points,  it  must  be  admitted,  are  not  every- 
thing. For  example,  one  man  may  live  in  a  rough 
bit  of  country,  way  up  in  Yorks,  or  in  the  wilds  of 
Scotland,  and  have  a  strain  of  Workman  Terriers, 
not  one  of  which  would  even  be  commended  in  the 
show  ring,  or  receive  a  word  of  praise  from  a  re- 
porter. Yet  these  dogs  may  suit  him  to  the  ground 
or  in  under  the  ground,  and  he  might  laugh  at  you 
if  you  offered  him  a  prize  winner,  beautiful  to  look 
at,  but  only  a  kind  of  carpet  knight,  who  would 
clap  his  tail  between  his  legs  if  he  saw  either  brock 
[badger]  or  otter. 

"Another  may  possess  a  strain  of  good  High- 
land workaday  Collies,  which  he  would  not  ex- 
change for  the  best  benchers  ever  shown,  or  a  strain 
of  old  English  Bobtails,  that  on  the  road  or  moor 
nothing  could  beat.  Well,  we  have  to  confess  there 
is  a  deal  in  strain,  and  it  isn't  always  the  bonniest 
hen  lays  the  largest  egg, 

"I  must  suppose  now  that  the  amateur  is  pos- 
sessed of  a  good  bitch — for  example's  sake,  we'll 
say  a  St.  Bernard.  She  is  of  the  best  pedigi^ee. 
She  is  young,  say  two  years  of  age,  tall,  with  plenty 
of  bone  and  muscle,  and  coat,  good  straight  legs, 
good  feet,  not  spread  out  like  a  frog's,  good  loins 
and  hips,  and  broad  chest,  and  a  tail  which  is  car- 


Brood,  Bitch  and  Puppies  77 

ried  fairly  well.  Now  there  is  no  bitch  which  ever 
I  have  seen  perfect  in  all  points.  Before  you  choose 
a  sire,  therefore,  try  to  see  him,  or  a  good  photo- 
graph of  him,  and  make  sure  he  is  strong  in  the 
points  your  bitch  lacks.  Perhaps  your  St.  Bernard 
is  a  bit  long  in  head,  or  sheep-doggy.  This  is  an 
ugly  fault,  but  may  be  corrected  by  judicious  choice 
of  sire.  A  worse  fault,  because  more  difficult  to 
correct,  would  be  want  of  size  and  massiveness. 
On  the  other  hand,  I  would  not  hesitate  to  breed 
from  a  bitch  who  was  accidentally  bandy-legged, 
if  good  in  all  other  points.  Never  breed,  however 
from  a  bitch  that  is  flat  ribbed  and  a  bad  doer. 
There  is  some  diathesis  in  her  that  the  best  of  sires 
cannot  correct. 

"To  have  a  good  litter  of  puppies,  then,  a  bitch 
must  not  only  possess  blood  free  from  all  taint  of 
disease,  but  she  must  be  strong  and  in  good  con- 
dition about  the  time  of  aestrum,  or  heat.  If  you 
have  in  any  way  neglected  her,  or  if,  through  cir- 
cumstances over  which  you  have  probably  had  no 
control,  she  has  fallen  off  a  bit,  begin  to  get  her  in 
form  three  months  before  the  time  of  her  coming 
on.  It  will  pay  you  to  do  so.  Some  slight  swelhng 
will  give  you  the  first  signal  of  her  coming  in 
season.  Then  in  a  day  or  two,  there  will  be  blood. 
This  may  continue  for  ten  days.     Some  breeders 


78  Forty  Years  Beagling 

wait  till  it  is  over  before  sending  her  on  the  visit. 
Perhaps  this  is  the  better  plan.  I  won't  go  further, 
because  I  believe  about  the  seventh  day,  and  while 
there  is  still  bleeding,  is  the  best  time  and  surest, 
especially  if  your  bitch  has  a  longish  journey  to 
make.  It  would  be  as  well  if  you  could  go  with 
your  favorite,  instead  of  sending  her.  Anyhow, 
most,  if  not  all,  good  breeders  are  not  only  gentle- 
men, but  lovers  of  dogs,  and  will  take  the  greatest 
care  of  the  bitch. 

"One  service,  if  supervised  by  an  experienced 
kennel-man,  would  be  sufficient.  It  is  better,  how- 
ever, to  make  assurance  doubly  sure,  with  an  inter- 
val of  twenty-four  hours.  A  whole  day's  complete 
rest;  without  exercise,  should  be  given  before  the 
bitch  starts  on  her  return  journey.  When  the 
bitch  comes  back,  make  much  of  her.  She  will  be 
as  glad  to  see  you  as  if  she  had  never  expected  to 
meet  you  again  here  below.  And  love  like  this  is 
not  to  be  despised. 

"Well,  now,  for  the  next  two  months  the  bitch 
must  require  every  attention.  For  safety's  sake 
she  should  be  kept  away  from  her  old  canine  friends 
for  about  a  week.  She  must  not,  however,  be  de- 
nied exercise,  and  throughout  all  the  time  she  is 
carrying  her  puppies  she  must  have  plenty  of  exer- 
cise and  fresh  air.    But  it  must  not  be  of  too  bolster- 


Brood,  Bitch  and  Puppies  79 


ous  a  character,  and  I  would  not  permit  a  bitch  in 
whelp  to  play  with  a  dog  of  her  own  size  too  much. 
A  collision  between  her  and  a  hesLvy  companion 
might  be  very  serious  indeed.  Feed  her  now  on  a 
gradually  increasing  scale  of  diet.  Give  oatmeal, 
well-mashed  greens,  Spratt's  biscuits  and  gravy, 
with  a  little  meat;  also  large  bones  to  gnaw. 
Plenty  of  milk  will  do  good. 

"The  nearer  her  time  she  gets,  the  more  she  will 
need  to  eat.  Feed  her  three  times  a  day  or  even 
four  times.  If  you  give  her  biscuit,  let  them  be 
steeped  and  well  mashed.  On  the  feeding  of  the 
bitch  during  this  time  will  depend  the  size  and 
helpfulness  of  the  coming  litter.  You  might  give 
her  cod-liver  oil,  but  it  leads  to  deception,  for  it  will 
fatten  without  giving  strength  and  toughness  of 
muscular  tissue.  It  is  important  the  bitch  should 
not  ail  dui'ing  this  time.  If  she  is  too  much  con- 
fined, she  will  get  livery  and  the  foetus  formation 
will  deteriorate.  Castor  oil,  with  a  little  of  the 
liquid  extract  of  cascara  sagrada,  might  do  good 
now  and  then.  Half  an  ounce  of  oil,  warmed  with 
two  teaspoonfuls  of  the  cascara,  would  be  enough 
for  a  very  large  dog.  In  keeping  the  bitch  up  in 
health,  strength  and  form  you  must  try  to  hit  the 
happy  medium,  for  you  must  not  heat  the  blood. 

"It  is  important  the  skin  should  be  kept  clean, 


80  Forty  Years  Beagling 


and  you  might  wash  once  a  fortnight  for  the  first 
month  or  six  weeks,  but  not  after.  Only  a  most 
abundant  bed  of  oat  straw  should  be  given,  and  the 
comb  and  hair-brush  plied  every  day.  As  the  time 
draws  near,  the  bitch  may  show  some  symptoms  of 
restlessness.  She  is  looking  for  a  comfortable 
berth  to  lie  down  in.  In  this  you  must  assist  her, 
and  if  the  place  she  seems  to  choose  meets  all  the 
requirements  of  the  case,  it  won't  do  to  gainsay 
her. 

"In  about  a  month's  time  you  may  begin  to  look 
for  some  signs  that  the  visit  was  a  success.  It  is 
difficult  to  explain  what  these  signs  are  to  a  novice. 
But,  say  five  weeks  have  passed  and  there  is  not 
much  show,  you  may  cause  this  to  appear  by  put- 
ting your  hand  under  the  dog's  body,  and  lifting 
this  gently  upwards,  because  there  is  always  a 
certain  amount  of  drooping.  Secondly,  the  teats 
begin  to  swell  very  gradually,  especially  in  the 
primipar,  or  first-litter  bitch.  Indeed  a  primipar 
may  have  a  very  little  flow  of  milk  for  a  day  or  two 
after  the  pups  are  born.  This  need  not  cause 
anxiety,  the  milk  will  come  in  abundance  in  good 
time.  Thirdly,  there  is  a  difference  in  the  bitch, 
mentally  considered.  She  becomes  more  affec- 
tionate, more  sedate,  more  motherly,  though  now 
and  then  the  exuberance  of  youth  bursts  all  bounds, 


Brood,  Bitch  and  Puppies  81 

and  she  becomes  as  gay  as  a  lark.  But  she,  as  a  rule 
views  her  increasing  size  and  the  swelling  of  her 
teats  in  a  very  serious  way  indeed,  and  seems  to 
ask  you  what  is  the  matter,  and  if  nothing  can  be 
done.  In  fact  she  is  quite  a  study  during  the  last 
fortnight. 

"If  a  valuable  bitch,  she  must  be  watched  all 
night,  as  she  may  need  assistance.  If  your  trench- 
man  is  a  good  fellow,  he  won't  object  to  having  his 
hammock  near  her  for  a  night  or  two.  There  is  no 
reason  why  he  should  not  sleep,  for  if  she  wants 
help  she  will  come  and  nudge  him.  She  must  have 
plenty  of  clean  water  in  the  room,  and  milk  or 
broth,  or  both,  for  the  strength  must  be  kept  up. 
The  danger  now  to  be  apprehended  is  overlaying, 
and  if  there  are  many  puppies,  and  it  is  a  first 
litter,  this  is  very  great,  for  usually  the  mother  is 
awkward,  and  a  stroke  of  her  paw  might  kill  a 
tender  thing.  A  St.  Bernard  may  lay  her  big  head 
on  a  puppy  and  press  the  life  out  of  it. 

"Perhaps,  therefore,  the  safest  plan  is  to  have  a 
basket  lined  with  flannel,  and  a  piece  of  flannel  to 
put  over  the  puppies.  Each  is  taken  away,  and 
placed  in  this  after  the  mother  has  seen  it,  till  all 
are  born.  Sometimes  there  are  one  or  two  very  late. 
You  may  go  away,  assuring  yourself  all  is  over, 
and  that  your  bitch  has  a  litter  of  only  five,  and 


82  Forty  Years  Beagling 

come  back  in  the  morning  to  find  seven  all  sucking 
away  like  as  many  leeches,  and  the  mother  looking 
so  proud  and  pleased  she  wouldn't  change  places 
with  a  princess  royal." 


CHAPTER    VI 

SPEED   VERSUS   NOSE 

DISCUSSIONS  of  type,  breeding,  etc., 
having  been  dwelt  upon  for  a  period  of 
some  years,  the  ever-ready  discussion  of 
the  difference  between  speed  and  nose,  voice,  etc., 
cropped  up  in  the  early  Nineties  and  was  as  much 
a  thorn  in  the  sides  of  the  pros  and  cons,  of  those 
days  as  it  is  in  the  modern  beagler  of  today,  if  what 
follows  is  any  criterion. 

A  gentleman  who  signs  himself  "Comedy,"  and 
who  lived  at  Maiden,  Massachusetts,  gives  a  lot  of 
interesting  information  and  enters  into  many  dis- 
cussions. In  referring  to  a  previous  correspondent, 
he  replies  in  Forest  and  Stream  of  October,  1894, 
by  saying:  "I  did  not  think  of  again  writing  on 
this  matter,  but  the  letter  of  your  correspondent 
in  a  late  issue  sets  me  going  again.  He  concludes 
his  letter  with  the  hope  that  he  will  hear  more  from 
his  friends.  Setting  aside  that  hope,  some  other 
parts  of  his  letter  would  probably  have  brought  me 
out. 

"He  challenges  his  friends  who  do  not  believe  he 


84  Forty  Years  Beagling 

knows  what  a  good  dog  is,  to  look  up  his  record  and 
see  about  his  handling  as  many  beagles  and  other 
dogs  as  any  one  in  the  State;  and  then  he  goes  on 
to  tell  us  the  beagles  (?)  he  has  owned  and  handled 
are  the   'short,  bow-legged,   long-bodied  beagles/ 
Shade  of  Sirius!    What  kind  of  a  beagle  is  that? 
Had  the  gentleman  owned  a  French  or  German 
name  it  might  have  been  excusable,  but  for  one  with 
a  good  Anglo-Saxon  name  to  refer  to  a  beagle  as 
'bow-legged   and    long-bodied,'    it   takes    the    fish 
biscuit.    I  read  the  letter  aloud  to  my  neighbor  last 
evening,  and  as  we  went,  lantern  in  hand,  to  close 
the  kennel  gate  between  us  and  the  pack,  none  of 
which  measure  28  inches,  from  tip  of  nose  to  root 
of  tail,  I  thought  I  heard  him  quote  Shakespeare's 
'Oberon' — 'Ho,    ho,    ho!'    and    say,    'Bow-legged, 
long-bodied'   beagle.     Once  in   a  while,  unfortu- 
nately, such  a  dog  creeps  mto  the  field  trials;  but 
if  our  friend  had  followed  the  results  of  last  year's 
awards  he  would  have  found  such  a  dog,  although 
winning  a  fii^st,  was  duly  disqualified  as  not  being 
a  typical  beagle.    That  there  are  poor  beagles  and 
useless  beagles  no  one  at  all  acquainted  with  the 
breed  will  deny;   that   some   are  gunshy  is   well 
known,  the  latter  as  'Agamak'  says,  being  among 
the  best  of  workers,  yet  it  does  not  follow  that  such 
a  fault  is  transmitted  to  the  progeny,  neither  does 


Speed  Versus  Nose  85 

it  follow  that  all  the  puppies  from  those  that  are 
not  gunshy  will  be  like  their  parents  in  that  respect. 
I  have  in  mind  now  the  product  of  two  bitches,  one 
gunshy  and  one  not ;  the  former  never  raised  a  gun- 
shy  puppy  (and  her  puppies  have  been  used  in  the 
field)  ;  the  latter  produced  both,  and  that  from  the 
same  dog,  yet  the  gunshy  dog  was  a  thorough  work- 
man. As  a  breeder  remarked  to  me  the  other  day, 
'Everything  depends  on  getting  your  puppies  into 
good  hands.'  If  one  has  a  reputation  to  make  it  is 
better  to  dispose  of  the  young  stock  to  a  practical 
field  man  for  a  less  amount  than  to  the  uninitiated 
for  a  higher  price,  for  the  practical  man  will  cer- 
tainly give  the  pup  the  necessary  chance.  Such 
a  one  wrote  me  only  a  few  days  ago,  asking  at  the 
same  time  after  the  welfare  of  a  pup  of  his  breed- 
ing; this  same  man  at  one  time  owned  Fitzhugh 
Lee,  showing  that  practical  men  do  use  show 
beagles. 

"Your  correspondent  tells  us  that  he  has  a  bea- 
gle and  that  he  thinks  it  will  make  a  good  hound; 
if  he  has  now  a  'sure  enough'  beagle  I  hope  it  turns 
out  well,  and  if  he  handles  it  gently  and  gives  it  a 
good  chance,  there  is  a  strong  probability  that  he 
will  have  a  highly  satisfactory  hound.  If  he  thinks 
it  as  good  as  someone  else's,  there  are  three  or  four 
annual  field  trials  for  beagles  provided  for  the  pur- 


86  Forty  Years  Beagling 


pose  of  proving  quality,  where  I  believe  all  hounds 
get  a  fair  chance  to  be  seen  and  heard. 

"And  now  I  come  to  the  last  but  one  paragraph, 
where  your  correspondent  thinks  it  a  bitter  pill  to 
swallow  when  one  goes  out  only  to  hear  the  hounds. 
I  feel  like  the  gentleman  who  wrote  'what's  the 
use';  perhaps  your  correspondent  will  tell  me  why 
a  true  huntsman  tries  to  match  the  tones  of  his 
hounds,  if  it  isn't  to  hear  their  music?    AVhy  does 
the  bard  of  Avon  say   'match'd  on  mouths  like 
bells'  ?    I  always  supposed  it  was  the  music  of  their 
voices  that  the  foxhound,  the  harrier  and  the  beagle 
had  been  cultivated  for,  as  much  as  for  their  scent 
and  rabbit  hunting.    In  my  estimation  not  less  than 
fom-  dogs  are  necessary  for  a   satisfactory  run; 
they  need  to  be   selected   something  like  this:   a 
treble,  a  high  tenor,  a  second  tenor,  and  a  deep  tone 
or  baritone;  then  if  they  pack  with  equal  nose  and 
speed,  why  the  music  and  the  echoes  are  worth 
losing  a  few  hours'  sleep  to  hsten  to.     Perhaps, 
to  properly  appreciate  such  music,  one  has  to  be 
educated  thereto.     Fortunately,  as  a  boy,  I  had 
opportunities  of  hearing  such  packs  of  foxhounds 
as  the  Earl  of  Coventry's,  the  Berkeley  and  the 
Ledbury,   on  days  that  their  meets  were  in  the 
neighborhood.    Every  veer  of  the  wind  was  studied, 
every  sound  listened  to — but  perhaps  I  had  better 


Speed  Versus  Nose  87 


not  diverge  from  the  beagle  subject;  knowing  that 
I  never  could  own  enough  foxhounds  to  make  a 
pack,  I  thought  I  might  some  time  own  some  of  his 
diminutive  relatives,  and  I  think  I  have  laid  a 
foundation.  I  Imow  it  is  a  long  way  round,  Mr. 
Editor,  to  breed  a  satisfactory  hunting  and  musical 
pack,  but  then  there  is  the  pleasure  of  it  and  of 
knowing  each  individual's  peculiarity  and  breeding 
thoroughly,  and  the  stimulus  of  overcoming  the 
many  obstacles  to  be  met  with. 

"I  used  to  like  taking  a  gun  to  shoot  rabbits 
where  they  were  thick,  but  it  is  nearly  a  year  since 
I  had  a  shotgun  in  hand,  and,  with  one  exception, 
nearly  ten  years  since  I  shot  a  rabbit.  I  know  my 
friends  and  acquaintances  often  laugh  at  me  about 
getting  nothing,  but  I  laugh  back.  Last  time  I  got 
a  cold,  and  had  to  stay  indoors  two  or  three  days, 
then  they  say,  'What  do  you  go  in  the  woods  nights 
for?'  I  answer,  'To  hear  the  dogs  run.'  'Well,'  they 
say,  'you  can't  see  that  the  dogs  hunt,'  but  I  reply 
that  it  is  to  hear  the  dogs'  voices,  that  musical  dis- 
cord that  the  bard  of  Avon  writes  of. 

"That  brings  me  to  those  beagle  meets.  I  am  a 
little  selfish  in  making  the  suggestion,  I  want  to 
hear  the  combined  music  of  a  number  of  hounds 
such  as  we  have  here ;  some  of  the  stock  will  furnish 
the  treble,  we  may  get  the  short  tenor  and  counter 


88  Forty  Years  Beagling 

tenor  from  the  Forest  stock,  probably  for  long 
notes  of  a  very  mellow  cadence  we  can  find  some 
of  old  Ringwood's  near  descendants,  while  perhaps 
the  Lee  and  Wolf  Tone  blood  will  furnish  us  with 
deeper  tones.  The  more  I  think  over  this  subject, 
the  better  I  think  of  it.  I  am  pleased  to  see  that 
'Colombia'  favors  the  idea  even  if  he  thinks  the 
meets  should  be  three  times  a  week;  probably  I 
agree  with  him  and  it  is  not  unlikely  that  I  shall 
go  more  than  once  a  week,  but  if  the  once-a-week 
works  well,  it  will  be  little  trouble  to  broach  the 
subject  of  more  frequent  meets. 

"Acting  on  your  suggestion,  I  have  no  objection 
to  act  as  'whipper-in,'  in  fact,  I  shall  be  glad  to  hear 
from  any  local  or  other  beagle  men  on  the  subject. 
A  postal  addressed  to  'Comedy,'  Maiden,  Massa- 
chusetts, will  reach  me  all  right  and  be  duly  an- 
swered. I  may  say,  that  so  far  as  two  or  three  of  us 
are  concerned,  the  meets  are  an  established  fact,  and 
I  have  received  considerable  encouragement  from 
others.  I  hope  those  who  wish  to  associate  for  the 
purpose  of  running  their  hounds  will  be  of  the  kind 
that  care  for  the  sport  more  than  for  the  rabbits. 

"Had  it  not  been  for  the  drought,  I  should  proba- 
bly be  writing  this  letter  from  camp,  as  my  neighbor 
and  self  had  so  arranged,  taking  the  hounds  and 
staying  over  Labor  Day,  but  I  think  it  would  be 


Speed  Versus  Nose  89 


almost  useless  to  expect  much  of  a  run  this  dry 
weather.  Hoping  to  hear  further  from  the  fellow 
beagle  men  both  through  your  columns  and  the 
mail." 

Then  Mr.  G.  A.  Bockstaff,  in  December  of  the 
same  year,  opens  up  on  the  question  of  speed  versus 
nose,  that  old  familiar  argument  which  we  hear  dis- 
cussed more  than  ever  today,  so  that  in  harking 
back  to  what  the  field-trial  men  thought  of  this 
question,  a  quarter  of  a  century  ago,  should  be  of 
more  than  passing  interest  to  the  present-day  fol- 
lower of  the  trials.  He  states  that  about  a  year 
previous  he  had  started  a  discussion  on  the  speed 
of  beagles  in  field  trials  in  another  journal,  and 
"while  I  was  not  snowed  under  by  any  means,  the 
beagle  men  of  the  West  were  not  enthusiastic  by 
any  means  for  my  style  of  beagle.  I  now  want  to 
carry  my  lance  into  the  camp  of  the  Eastern  men, 
and  should  like  you  to  spare  me  space  to  do  it. 
My  contention  is  that  too  much  weight  is  put  on 
speed  and  too  little  on  the  fine  powers  of  scent — 
nose.  This  latter  power  is  about  the  only  great 
difference  between  a  hound  and  a  cur  dog.  The 
object  of  beagle  breeders  that  are  aiming  for  field 
trial  winners  seems  to  be  to  get  speed  at  all  hazards. 
Get  nose  if  they  can,  but  at  any  rate  they  must 
get  speed.     It  is  rather  amusing  to  go  to  a  bench 


90  Forty  Years  Beagling 

show  and  see  the  fine  little  fellows  that  walk  off 
with  the  blue  ribbons,  and  then  go  to  a  field  trial 
and  see  the  gaunt,  long-legged  terrier-looking  dogs, 
that  come  to  compete  for  field  honors,  and  what 
is  more,  the  hound  voice  is  missing  in  at  least  half 
of  them — they  yap  like  rat-dogs.  But  that  cuts 
no  figure;  the  point  is  to  win  and  it  takes  speed  to 
do  it.  It  is,  however,  a  fact  that  fine  bench-shov/ 
dogs  come  to  the  trials  and  sometimes  win  in  spite 
of  the  handicap  of  hound  form.  If  the  beagle  is 
to  be  developed  for  use  in  the  field  and  beauty  of 
form,  oui'  field  trials  will  not  bring  about  the 
desired  result. 

"Great  speed  in  a  beagle  is  not  at  all  necessary 
to  make  him  a  pleasant  dog  to  take  on  a  rabbit 
chase ;  in  fact  it  is  a  drawback  if  you  are  out  to  kill 
a  big  bag  of  game.  What  gives  me  pleasure  in  my 
beagles  is  to  have  them  sure  on  the  trail  with  speed 
enough  not  to  be  'pottering'  or  laggards,  with  fine 
hound  form  and  musical  voices.  To  be  sure,  I  don't 
own  many  such  because  the  country  does  not  afford 
many.  Now,  I  should  like  to  ask  the  judges  of  the 
National  trials  at  Hempstead  at  what  point  in  the 
scale  of  field  trial  virtues  in  a  beagle  they  drop 
speed  and  credit  nose,  and  at  what  point  they  drop 
nose  and  credit  speed? 

"I  would  take,  for  example,  my  own  dog.  Royal 


Speed  Versus  Nose  91 

Rover,  at  the  Hempstead  trials.  (Now  Messieurs 
the  Judges,  don't  think  I  am  kicking,  for  I  am  not. 
I  simply  want  to  know  how  you  decide  on  the  win- 
ner, as  I  think  it  will  help  to  prove  my  point  that  we 
are  on  the  wrong  track.)  Rover  was  sent  East 
more  as  an  object  lesson  than  with  any  hope  of  win- 
ning money  or  renown.  If  I  convince  a  few  beagle 
men  that  I  am  right,  the  money  was  well  spent. 
In  the  first  series.  Rover  defeated  Nell  R.,  and 
from  all  reports  did  it  easil3%  and  she  won  the  derby. 
He  must  have  possessed  considerable  speed  to  do 
that.  The  only  other  dog  he  had  a  chance  to  run 
against  was  Buckshot,  the  winner  of  the  All-Age 
Stake,  and  after  that  heat,  it  was  decided  that 
Rover  had  the  best  nose,  but  that  Buckshot  was  too 
fast  for  him.  With  speed  enough  to  beat  the  Derby 
winner  and  a  better  nose  than  the  All- Age  winner, 
Rover  was  dropped  out  of  the  class  and  five  dogs 
placed  over  him.  Now  it  looks  to  me  as  though 
my  point  was  proven,  that  speed  is  about  all  that 
is  wanted.  When  a  dog  with  good  speed  and  good 
nose  is  thrown  out  for  a  dog  with  more  speed  and 
less  nose,  I  say  the  system  of  judging  is  wrong — 
in  my  opinion. 

"However,  the  judges  may  put  a  new  light  on 
the  matter,  if  they  care  to  answer  my  question.  !^ 
had  about  made  up  my  mind  not  to  bring  up  this 


92  Forty  Years  Beagling 

question  again,  but  I  see  that  Mr.  Fellows  and  Mr. 
Muss-Arnolt  are  after  the  foxhound  standard,  and 
so  I  took  courage  from  them." 

Then  Mr.  H.  L.  Kreuder  of  Nanuet,  New  York, 
gets  back  at  Mr.  Buckstaff  as  follows:  "In  your 
valuable  paper  [Forest  and  Stream,  December 
24th,  1894]  of  the  15th  instant,  I  read  an  article 
written  by  Mr.  G.  A.  Buckstaff  on  the  relative 
meriting  qualities  of  speed  and  nose  in  beagles. 

"I  regret  that  I  cannot  admit  being  entirely  car- 
ried away  with  Mr.  B.'s  argument.  He  says  the 
aim  among  breeders  who  desire  field-trial  winners 
is  to  'get  speed  at  all  hazards  and  get  nose  if  you 
can,'  and  this  is  not  the  kind  of  a  dog  to  get  rabbits 
with. 

"Now,  to  substantiate  his  argument,  Mr.  B.  says 
he  sent  his  dog  Royal  Rover  to  the  National  Beagle 
Club  trials  this  fall  as  an  object  lesson.  He  says 
that  in  the  first  series  Rover  defeated  Nell  R.,  and 
from  all  reports  did  it  easily,  and  she  won  the  derby. 
He  must  have  possessed  considerable  speed  to  do 
that.  Right  here  I  want  to  call  Mr.  B.'s  attention 
to  his  first  mistake.  The  judges  were  working  on 
the  spotting  system  and  as  a  positive  fact,  I  know 
the}'-  did  not  make  the  mistake  of  announcing  win- 
ners of  heats,  or  in  any  way  give  their  opinions  as 
to  the  respective  merits  or  demerits  of  any  dog 


Speed  Versus  Nose  93 

previous  to  their  final  awards.  Mr.  B.  errs  in  read- 
ing the  opinion  of  some  'would-be  reporter'  in  tak- 
ing it  for  granted  that  the  reporter's  opinion  is  also 
that  of  the  judges. 

"To  further  prove  my  assertion,  I  will  again 
quote  from  Mr.  B.'s  letter,  in  which  he  says  that 
'the  only  other  dog  he  (Royal  Rover)  had  a  chance 
to  run  against  was  Buckshot,  the  winner  of  the 
All-Age  Stake,  and  after  a  hot  heat  it  was  decided 
that  Rover  had  the  best  nose,  but  Buckshot  was  too 
fast  for  him.'  Now,  in  justice  to  the  judges,  Messrs. 
Turpin  and  Lewis,  does  Mr.  B.  believe  that  they 
rendered  this  decision,  and  if  so,  in  the  sense  and 
with  the  meaning  that  his  letter  implies? 

''With  speed  enough  to  beat  the  Derby  winner, 
a  better  nose  than  the  All- Age  winner,  he  says  his 
dog  was  dropped  out  of  the  class.  Now,  this  smacks 
strongly  of  a  'kick,'  and  I  don't  believe  he  means 
to  be  a  kicker.  I  also  believe  his  motive  in  writing 
his  letter  is  honest. 

"Now,  the  Derby  class  of  the  National  Beagle 
Club's  1894  trials  had  three  starters;  and  his  dog, 
we  will  admit,  beat  the  winner,  does  that  follow 
that  he  should  defeat  twelve  other  starters  in  the 
All-Age  Stake?  Mr.  Buckstaff  assumes  that  his 
dog  had  speed  enough  to  beat  the  Derby  winner  and 
he  takes  it  for  granted  that  his  dog  had  a  better 


94  Forty  Years  Beagling 

nose  than  the  All-Age  winner,  probably  because 
some  'reporter'  said  so,  and  his  deduction  is  that 
his  dog  was  not  properly  placed  by  the  judges. 
Does  Mr.  B.  believe  that  speed  credit  is  misplaced 
when  one  dog  is  in  the  lead  and  going  right  along 
accurately  on  the  trail,  as  proven  by  the  slower 
dog  with  the  better  nose  following  exactly  the  same 
course,  but  considerably  in  the  rear  and  with  much 
noise  and  ado?  Mr.  B.  says  we  get  speed  and 
sacrifice  nose.  I  say  that  a  dog  who  has  speed  must 
have  nose  and  a  terrifically  sensitive  one  to  carry 
the  scent  deposited  by  the  fleeing  rabbit  ahead  of 
the  speedy  dog  or  he  could  not  adhere  to  the  trail 
as  closely  as  the  five  dogs  did  that  were  placed 
ahead  of  his  dog  at  Hempstead  last  month  by 
honest  judges. 

"That  letter  implies,  in  a  general  way,  that  great- 
er credit  is,  or  was,  given  to  the  speedy  dog,  or 
otherwise  considered  holding  to  the  trail  a  very 
inferior,  secondary  matter;  in  other  words,  a  dog 
who  slashes  and  dashes  around  through  the  brush, 
making  much  noise,  with  the  rabbit  behind  him. 
Now,  which  would  he  prefer,  a  pack  that  will  start 
game  and  in  a  leisui-ely  way  (but  holding  the  trail 
accurately)  bring  the  game  to  his  gun  in  say,  forty, 
fifty  or  sixty  minutes,  without  having  increased  the 
throb  of  his  pulse  one  single  beat  (normal  80),  or  a 


Speed  Versus  Nose  95 

pack  that  will  start  game  and  in  an  eager,  pushing, 
crowding,  bustling  way  (but  holding  the  trail  ac- 
curately) bring  the  game  to  the  gun  in  five,  ten  or 
fifteen  minutes,  with  pulse  beating  from  150  to  200, 
your  cap  on  the  back  of  your  head  or  the  ground, 
every  nerve  strained,  your  hand  a-clutching  the 
gun,  your  eyes  bursting  from  the  sockets  in  your 
endeavors  to  catch  a  glimpse  and  a  shot  at  the 
thoroughly  alarmed  rabbit  going  for  dear  life  50 
feet  ahead  of  your  speedy  pack  with  'speedy'  noses? 
Whew !  I  had  to  stop  here  for  a  moment,  as  I  had 
mentally  followed  this  pack,  and  was  in  about  the 
condition  'Canada  Gray'  must  have  been  in  when 
he  called  a  halt  for  water  at  Oxford. 

"Now,  I  contend  that  this  hue  and  cry  about 
speed  without  nose  is  all  'poppycock,'  and  as  a  mat- 
ter of  fact,  it  is  really  a  physical  impossibility.  I, 
for  one,  will  boldly  say  that  I  want  the  dog  with 
speed  and  nose,  and  I  believe  that  95%  of  those 
who  use  beagles  are  in  the  same  mind.  Let  us  wait 
and  see  what  others  have  to  say." 

Mr.  Bradford  S.  Turpin,  one  of  the  judges,  gives 
his  opinion  of  Mr.  Buckstaff's  letter  as  follows: 

"I  have  just  read  Mr.  Buckstaff's  letter  entitled 
'Shall  it  be  Speed  or  Nose?'  In  reply  let  me  say, 
that  it  shall  be  neither  one  nor  the  other,  but  a  com- 
bination of  both.     Speed  and  nose,  those  are  qual- 


96  Forty  Years  Beagling 

ities  for  which  the  great  majority  of  beagle  men 
are  searching,  and  in  my  opinion  rightly.  Mr. 
Buckstaff  says,  'If  the  beagle  is  to  be  developed 
for  use  in  the  field  and  beauty  of  form,  our  field 
trials  will  bring  about  the  desired  result,'  and  im- 
plies that  the  'gaunt,  long-legged,  terrier-looking 
dogs,'  of  which  he  has  previously  spoken,  are  the 
ones  which  w4n  the  majority  of  prizes  in  our  trials. 
That  is  the  subject  on  which  I  desire  to  say  some- 
thing later — provided  no  one  else  gets  ahead  of  me 
— but  in  this  note  I  merely  wish  to  reply,  as  far 
as  I  can,  to  the  questions  which  he  puts  to  the 
judges  at  the  last  National  Beagle  Club  trials  at 
Hempstead,  of  whom  I  had  the  pleasure  to  be  one. 
"He  says,  'Now,  I  should  like  to  ask  the  judges 
...  at  what  point  in  the  scale  of  field  trial  virtues 
in  a  beagle  they  drop  nose  and  credit  speed?'  In 
reply  let  me  say  that  the  moment  a  beagle  outruns 
his  nose,  goes  so  fast  that  he  cannot  carry  the  trail, 
that  instant  speed  is  dropped  and  nose  credited. 
There  is  no  point  at  wliich  nose  is  dropped  and 
speed  credited,  for  a  beagle  without  a  nose  is  no 
beagle  at  all,  whereas  a  beagle  without  speed  may 
be  a  fairly  good  hound.  A  good  example  of  a 
hound  that  outran  his  nose  at  these  trials  was 
Millard.  I  doubt  if  there  was  a  faster  beagle  on 
the  grounds,  but  he  did  not  or  could  not  use  his 


Speed  Versus  Nose  97 


nose — consequently  his  speed  was  no  advantage  to 
him.  He  did  not  even  make  the  second  series, 
though  according  to  'Buckstaff's'  reasoning  he 
ought  to  have  been  among  the  winners.  Mr.  Buck- 
staff  in  his  endeavor  to  prove  that  'speed  is  about 
all  that  is  wanted,'  says:  'In  the  first  series  Rover 
defeated  Nell  R.,  and  from  all  reports  did  it  easily, 
and  she  won  the  Derby.  He  must  have  possessed 
considerable  speed  to  do  that.  The  only  other  dog 
he  had  a  chance  to  run  against  was  Buckshot,  the 
winner  of  the  All-Age  Stake;  and  after  a  hot  race 
it  was  decided  Rover  had  the  best  nose,  but  that 
Buckshot  was  too  fast  for  him.  With  speed  enough 
to  beat  the  Derby  winner  and  a  better  nose  than 
the  All- Age  winner.  Rover  was  dropped  out  of  the 
class  and  five  dogs  placed  over  him.' 

"If  all  this  is  correct,  no  wonder  Mr.  Buckstaff 
'wants  to  know  how  you  decided  on  the  winner.' 
Let  us  look  at  it.  Royal  Rover  did  not  defeat  Nell 
R.  easily.  On  the  contrary,  it  was  a  very  close 
thing  between  them  in  a  race  which  was  run  at  a 
time  when  Nell  R.  v/as  tired  out — she  was  only  a 
Derby  dog  remember — on  her  long,  hard  run  in  the 
swamp  on  the  previous  day.  Had  Nell  shown  her 
true  speed  in  this  race — which  she  did  show  later  in 
her  Derby  race — Rover  would  not  have  been  placed 
in  the  second  series. 


98  Forty  Years  Beagling 


"Now  for  the  Royal  Rover-Buckshot  race.  Who 
'decided'  that  Rover  had  the  best  nose  of  the  brace? 
That  was  not  the  opinion  of  the  judges,  and  no  one 
else  had  any  right  to  make  any  decision  and  no  one 
else  did  make  any.  The  facts  of  the  case  are  that 
Buckshot  showed  fully  as  good  nose  and  fully  as 
good  hunting  sense  as  Rover,  and  far  greater  speed. 
But  his  speed  was  not  so  great  that  he  outran  his 
nose.  In  the  race  he  led  most  of  the  time,  picked 
out  the  majority  of  the  turns,  and  taking  into  con- 
sideration all  the  desirable  qualities  that  go  to  make 
up  the  hunting  beagle,  was  an  easy  winner. 

"Mr.  Buckstaff's  statements  which  he  makes  as 
facts,  and  on  which  he  relies  to  prove  his  case,  are 
not  facts  at  all,  and  any  argument  based  on  them 
necessarily  falls  to  the  ground  and  is  unworthy 
of  consideration.  I  have  not  the  pleasure  of  Mr. 
Buckstaff's  acquaintance,  but  nevertheless  I  hop^ 
he  will  accept  my  congratulations  on  his  election  to 
the  State  Legislature  and  my  earnest  hope  that  his 
speeches  and  arguments  in  that  body  may  rest  on 
facts  and  not  on  imagination." 

Mr.  George  F.  Reed,  of  Barton,  Vermont, 
goes  a  little  more  fully  into  the  question  of  this  race, 
in  particular  regarding  speed  and  nose,  and  says: 
"I  have  read  Forest  and  Stream  for  a  long  term  of 
vears,  and  I  have  not  taken  much  of  your  valuable 


Speed  Versus  Nose  99 

space  in  a  controversy  with  the  beagle  men,  but  in 
an  issue  of  your  paper  of  December  15th,  in  a  com- 
munication of  Mr.  Buckstaff' s  in  'Shall  it  be  Speed 
or  Nose?'  he  struck  me  in  a  tender  spot  when  he 
says  according  to  all  reports,  his  Royal  Rover  beat 
my  Nell  R.,  and  did  it  easily.  Now,  I  wish  to  say 
to  Mr.  Buckstaff,  that  the  reports  say  no  such  thing, 
and  further  that  Royal  Rover  can  not  beat  Nell  R. 
for  speed,  nose  or  any  other  hunting  quality,  for 
fun  or  for  money.  'Bradley,'  in  his  report  to 
Forest  and  Stream,  says :  'Rover  fairly  outworked 
Nell,  as  she  acted  as  though  she  was  tired.'  This 
I  admit  in  part.  They  ran  the  day  before  over  two 
hours  together.  No  part  of  the  heat  was  satis- 
factorily seen  by  the  judges  and  the  dogs  were 
ordered  up.  The  next  morning  they  were  put 
down  again  and  a  few  minutes  afterwards  IVIr. 
Chapman  kicked  out  a  rabbit.  Rover  was  put  on 
the  trail  immediately,  and  the  rabbit  at  once  left 
the  brush  and  went  into  a  mowed  field  and  took 
nearly  a  straight  line  for  a  garden.  Nell  at  the  time 
the  rabbit  was  started  was  a  number  of  rods  away 
from  Rover  and  did  not  know  that  he  had  a  rabbit 
running,  until  I  called  her  out  of  the  brush.  She 
then  had  to  make  up  some  twenty  rods  before  she 
could  get  in  with  Rover  and,  I  think,  did  not  get 
ahead  of  him.     The  rabbit  was  soon  lost  in  the 


100  Forty  Years  Beagling 

garden.    What  dog  found  the  trail,  drove  the  rab- 
bit into  the  rails  and  marked  him,  and  was  ordered 
to  be  caught  by  the  judges  as  she  was  trying  to 
work  into  the  rails  after  her  game  ?  are  the  questions 
that  I  wish  to  ask  Mr.  Buckstaff,  and  I  venture 
to  say  that  if  he  will  take  the  trouble  to  inform  him- 
self he  will  find  that  it  was  Nell  R.,  and  also,  that 
the  rabbit  might  have  been  in  the  garden  now  for 
all  Rover  did  toward  driving  him  out.    Was  there 
anything  about  that  heat  upon  which  Mr.  Buck- 
staff  can  claim  that  Rover  beat  Nell  R.  so  easily? 
"When  notice  was  given  out  of  the  dogs  that 
were  to  be  left  in  for  the  second  series  I  was  satis- 
fied to  find  that  Nell  had  been  left  out.    I  well  knew 
that  she  could  not  get  into  the  money,  for  I  had 
not  seen  anything  done  by  her  or  Rover  that  would 
entitle  them  to  run  again.    Nell  being  only  a  little 
over  one  year  old,  and  having  to  run  in  the  Derby 
the  next  day,  had  a  chance  to  rest  up,  and,  I  think, 
her  heat  with  Lucy  in  the  Derby  was  the  fastest 
and  truest  heat  of  the  entire  trials,  and  if  Rover 
had  run  against  her  that  day,  it  would  have  been 
'poor  Rover.' 

"Now  in  the  heat  between  Buckshot  and  Rover, 
Mr.  Buckstaff  says :  *  After  a  hot  heat,  it  was  de- 
cided that  Rover  had  the  best  nose,  but  Buckshot 
was  too  fast  for  him.'    Not  any,  please,  Mr.  Buck- 


Speed  Versus  Nose  101 


staff,  such  decision  was  given  out  by  the  judges, 
for  the  facts  of  the  case  are  that  Rover  never  led 
Buckshot,  except  for  some  few  rods  when  he  was 
fii-st  put  on  the  rabbit.  In  the  report  of  Forest 
and  Stream,  written  by  Mr.  Turpin,  one  of  the 
judges,  and  he  came  very  near  having  seen  all  the 
work  done  by  the  dogs  that  was  possible  for  him 
to  see,  he  says:  'Worked  into  a  grass  field.  Both 
began  to  trail,  Buck  in  advance  until  Buck  started 
the  rabbit.'  Whose  nose  did  this  piece  of  work  I 
would  like  to  ask  Mr.  Buckstaff?  I  think  the 
judges,  handlers  and  spectators  will  all  remember 
that  drive  up  to  the  hedgerow.  The  next  rabbit 
was  soon  lost  after  being  started  by  Rover.  The 
next  work  done  was  on  a  trail  found  by  Buckshot 
and  I  called  Judge  Lewis's  attention  to  the  dog 
and  told  him  to  let  him  work  and  he  would  start 
the  rabbit,  and  he  did  so.  Report  in  Forest  and 
Stream  says:  'Buckshot  leading  the  way  and 
catching  most  of  the  turns.'  I  would  hke  to  ask 
Mr.  Buckstaff  if  he  can  see  anything  in  that  heat 
that  any  judge  should  say  that  Rover  had  the  best 
nose.  I  guess  not.  I  do  not  own  Buckshot  today, 
but  the  beagle  that  has  got  a  better  nose  than  he 
has  does  not  spell  his  name  Royal  Rover.  Buck- 
shot beat  Royal  Rover  at  both  Oxford  and  Hemp- 
stead under  four  different  judges.    If  Royal  Rover 


102  Forty  Years  Beagling 

was  sent  East  as  an  object  lesson  for  the  benefit  of 
the  Eastern  beagle  men,  I  think  he  was  a  failure. 
If  Mr.  Buckstaff  had  sent  such  a  dog  as  Dime, 
Buck,  Nell,  or  Lucy  we  should  have  something  that 
was  able  to  win,  with  nose  and  speed  combined.' 

"In  regard  to  the  judges'  decision,  any  one  who 
has  ever  attended  a  trial  where  Messrs.  Lewis  and 
Turpin  have  been  judges  will  see  how  close  they 
try  to  keep  up  and  how  careful  they  are  to  place 
the  dogs  right,  will  never  kick  if  his  dogs  do  not 
get  in  the  money. 

"About  a  year  ago  Mr.  Buckstaff  had  an  article 
on  speed  against  nose  and  wished  to  hear  from  the 
beagle  men.  I  will  answer  him  now.  I  want  a 
beagle  that  is  fast,  and  the  faster  the  better,  with 
nose  equal  to  his  speed,  and  that  on  a  loss  will  swing 
and  swing  at  the  top  of  his  speed  until  he  strikes 
the  trail  again;  built  to  stand  as  many  day's  hard 
work  as  I  wish  to  hunt,  a  good  barker,  good  starter 
and  a  stayer.  This  is  the  kind  of  beagle  I  have 
been  trying  to  breed  for  the  last  fifteen  years.  I 
have  not  been  going  down  the  beagle  ladder,  but 
climbing  up  and  trying  to  make  the  dogs  that  beat 
mine  climb,  and  when  those  dogs  get  through  a 
trial  against  my  dogs  they  will  not  leave  that  field 
saying  that  they  have  beaten  them  ^easily.'  If  Mr. 
Buckstaff  had  not  used  the  word  'easily,'  I  don't 


Speed  Versus  Nose  103 


think  I  should  have  answered  his  article,  but  I 
could  not  quite  stand  that.  In  regard  to  those  long- 
legged,  quaint,  terrier-looking  beagles,  will  say 
they  must  nearly  all  have  been  West,  as  I  did  not 
see  any  at  the  New  England  or  National  Beagle 
Club  trials.  I  have  yet  to  learn  why  a  fast,  true- 
running  beagle  is  a  handicap  for  a  hunting  beagle ; 
I  am  sure  on  our  large  rabbit  they  are  the  kind  we 
must  have.  It  is  no  sport  for  me  to  shoot  a  rabbit 
sitting  still  or  just  crawling  along  in  front  of  a 
slow  beagle,  simply  because  the  dog  has  not  nose 
and  speed  to  drive  him  into  a  run.  Did  any  beagle- 
man  ever  see  a  fast,  true-running  beagle  that  did 
not  have  a  good  nose?  Thanking  you  for  the  space 
this  letter  will  take,  I  will  step  down,  but  not  out, 
for  I  have  a  few  beagles  to  run  next  fall,  just  to 
keep  the  judges  from  catching  cold." 

Then  comes  Mr.  John  Bateman  who  tells  amus- 
ing anecdotes  about  the  noses  of  his  hounds  as 
follows:  "I  like  to  read  your  paper,  the  views  of 
others  regarding  beagles  and  their  hunting  qual- 
ities. In  regard  to  the  letter  of  Mr.  Buckstaff  on 
speed  and  nose  in  which  he  says  that  nose  is  the 
desirable  quality  in  the  beagle  for  this  game.  I 
have  hunted  a  great  deal  after  cotton-tails  with 
beagles,  in  fact,  have  been  thanked  by  farmers  for 
hunting  them  where  they  were  a  pest    (but  that 


104  Forty  Years  Beagling 

time  is  now  past).  If  you  hunt  with  a  very  fast 
dog  and  put  up  an  old  rabbit,  where  there  is  not 
much  cover,  away  he  goes,  driven  by  your  fast  dog. 
With  the  slower  dog,  and  of  good  nose,  the  rabbit 
will  hide  and  dodge  around,  and  in  all  probability 
you  will  soon  have  him.  In  proof  I  will  relate  what 
I  saw  on  a  hunt.  jMy  dog  had  been  running  a  rabbit, 
but  the  dog  was  a  long  distance  off,  and  still  work- 
ing out  the  trail.  I  saw  the  rabbit  squat,  so  I 
watched  his  actions.  He  cleaned  his  head  with  his 
f orepaws,  then  he  cleaned  and  brushed  his  whiskers 
with  his  forelegs,  all  the  while  sitting  on  his 
haunches.  But  as  the  dog  came  nearer  he  squatted 
low  and  soon  started.  He  seemed  to  be  playing 
hide  and  seek.     I  did  not  shoot  that  rabbit. 

"Now,  in  regard  to  nose,  one  time  I  had  my  bea- 
gles taken  five  miles  through  a  strange  district,  in  a 
wagon  to  the  hunting  grounds.  In  hunting  we  lost 
one  dog  in  the  woods,  and  when  ready  to  go  home 
found  another  dog  was  missing.  One  dog  arrived 
home  about  3  P.M.,  the  other  about  8  P.M.  Their 
only  chance  to  find  home  was  bj^  the  smell  of  the 
horses'  hoofs.  Another  example — I  had  taken  my 
dogs  to  an  Illinois  village;  they  had  never  been 
there  before,  were  fresh  and  wanted  a  hunt.  After 
hunting  all  day,  about  dark  I  heard  them  giving 
tongue  in  a  large  field  of  tall  weeds,  and  the}'  drove 


Speed  Versus  Nose  105 


four  rabbits  past  me.  I  shot  two,  although  it  was 
too  dark  to  shoot  properly,  but  the  dogs  would  not 
come  in.  I  was  about  three  miles  from  home  and 
was  afraid  I  would  lose  my  dogs,  but  concluded 
to  give  them  a  test.  I  had  rubber  boots  on,  and 
following  the  path  from  the  other  field  into  the 
main  road,  I  walked  the  three  miles  in  the  center  of 
the  road  to  my  lodgings.  I  was  much  concerned 
about  my  dogs,  but  about  9  P.M.  I  heard  a  whim- 
per at  the  door  and  opening  it  found  one  of  my 
beagles.  Shortly  after,  I  heard  another  whimper 
and  the  other  beagle  was  on  the  doorstep.  Do  you 
wonder  that  the  hunter  loves  his  hounds — what  but 
good  nose  would  have  brought  those  dogs  home?" 

Then  comes  Mr.  J.  F.  Stoddard,  of  Georgetown, 
New  York,  who  insists  that  speed  and  nose  are  not 
the  only  requisites  for  a  hound  to  have,  and  says: 
"Having  read  the  opinion  of  our  various  beagle 
friends  on  speed  versus  nose,  I  would  like  to  give 
my  opinion  if  you  deem  what  I  shall  say  of  suffi- 
cient interest  to  the  many  readers  of  your  valuable 
paper. 

"I  claim  speed  and  nose  constitute  only  a  small 
portion  of  the  necessary  requirements  of  a  good 
beagle.  He  may  have  both,  and  of  the  very  best, 
and  still  be  as  useless  for  rabbit-hunting  as  a  collie. 
A  good  beagle  must  be  bred  and  broken  to  the 


106  Forty  Years  Beagling 

work;  must  have  an  inherent  love  of  the  chase; 
must  be  sagacious  (better  known  as  level-headed) ; 
must  have  persistence  to  follow  the  trail  when  at  a 
loss,  staying  till  he  works  it  out,  running  only  as 
fast  as  his  intelhgence  tells  him  by  his  scenting 
powers  he  is  right,  following  true  and  steady,  giv- 
ing deep,  melodious  tongue. 

"Scent  and  intelligence  must  be  paramount, 
otherwise  he  will  overrun  the  track,  pick  up  his  loss 
indifferently  and  without  courage  or  persistence, 
quit.  He  is  not  requii^ed  to  catch  the  game  for  this 
very  reason,  the  beagle  is  used  for  rabbit-hunting 
and  the  standard  for  height  has  been  wisely  placed 
at  15  inches.  Small,  true,  slow-running  dogs  are 
better  for  rabbit  hunting  for  the  reason  that  as  a 
rabbit  runs  in  a  circle,  the  slower  he  is  run  the  less 
he  is  scared  and  the  smaller  he  makes  his  circle; 
thus  the  slow,  true-running  dog  brings  the  game 
more  quickly  to  the  gun,  for  it  stands  to  reason  the 
larger  the  circle  the  less  chance  the  hunter  has  of 
shooting. 

"Now,  if  a  fast-running  dog  is  preferable,  why 
use  beagles,  and  if  you  do  use  beagles,  why  not 
18-inch  beagles,  as  they  can  outrun  their  smaller 
companions  and  certainly  would  be  the  better  rab- 
bit-dog of  the  two,  all  else  being  equal,  providing 
speed  is  required?    Now,  no  hound  is  worth  hunt- 


Speed  Versus  Nose  107 

ing  who  is  a  quitter  or  cannot  last  the  hunt  out  if 
ended  in  one  daj^  He  ought  certainly  to  last  as 
long  as  a  man,  and  my  experience  with  both  beagles 
and  foxhounds  is  that  no  hound  can  stand  it  to  run 
all  day  who  runs  faster  than  his  strength  will  hold 
out.  Therefore  a  steady,  true-running  dog  is  much 
preferable  to  one  whose  speed  is  run  out  before  the 
hunt  is  half  over.  Give  me  a  true,  sure  trailer,  a 
sticker  and  a  laster,  one  who  works  his  ground  not 
madly  and  frantically,  but  carefully,  eagerly,  ju- 
diciously and  persistently ;  who  goes  to  work  as  soon 
as  the  brush  is  reached  and  holds  his  own  till  the 
hunters  are  ready  to  go  home,  be  it  one  hour  or  ten. 
And  day  in  and  week  out  I  kill  more  rabbits  with 
him  than  the  fastest-running  dog  that  ever  lived." 
Then  comes  "Rural,"  of  Wakefield,  Massachu- 
setts, who  although  evidently  not  as  experienced  as 
some  of  his  predecessors  in  the  speed  versus  nose 
hngo  has  his  say  in  these  words:  "It  is  with  great 
pleasure  that  I  read  articles  in  your  paper  from  the 
pens  of  experienced  beagle  men.  While  not  as  ex- 
perienced in  beagle  work  as  some  of  your  contrib- 
utors, I  believe  (as  a  result  of  my  observations) 
that  breeders  need  to  strive  for  courage,  hunt,  nose, 
and  staying  powers,  more  than  for  speed  in  beagles 
for  practical  work.  I  like  a  dog  that  has  ambition, 
is  not  timid,  when  cast  off,  will  get  to  work  at  once, 


108  Forty  Years  Beagling 

going  at  a  good  clip,  and  having  the  nose  to  back 
up  his  'hustle,'  not  having  to  depend  upon  a  slow 
dog  to  work  out  the  trail. 

"Speed  is  desirable,  but  we  should  not  be  carried 
away  with  the  speed  craze  that  we  neglect  the  more 
necessary  qualities  of  hunting  and  nose.  A  hus- 
tling man  does  not  amount  to  much  without  a  level 
head,  and  a  hustling  dog  doesn't  suit  a  practical 
hunter  unless  the  dog  has  keen  scent.  Too  many 
beagles  of  long  pedigrees  and  of  bench-show  stock, 
and  some  of  field-trial  fame,  have  to  be  coaxed  to 
*hunt  'em  up,'  when  the  hunting  ground  is  reached. 
Let  breeders  aim  to  produce  dogs  with  the  eager- 
ness to  hunt  that  spaniels  have. 

"Mr.  Kreuder,  in  Forest  and  Stream  of  Decem- 
ber 22nd  (1894),  says:  'Speed  without  nose  is  all 
poppycock  and  is  a  physical  impossibility.'  I  can 
not  agree  with  him,  for  I  have  seen  beagles  hustle 
a  rabbit  fast  and  true  for  quite  a  distance,  but  when 
the  scent  became  weaker,  on  less  favorable  ground, 
where  it  required  a  good  nose  to  carry  the  trail, 
these  dogs  were  at  a  loss  until  my  dog  (Ringwood- 
Flute  M.  stock),  nearly  as  fast  but  with  a  better 
nose,  worked  out  the  trail  for  them.  Now  these 
dogs  had  speed  surely,  but  were  without  the  proper 
nose  for  such  speed,  so  that  I  claim  that  speed  with- 
out a  good  nose  is  a  physical  impossibility,  and  in 


Speed  Versus  Nose  109 

too  many  cases  a  sad  fact.  Jean  Valjean  cannot 
be  a  dog  of  this  sort,  or  he  would  not  have  rightly 
beaten  Buckshot  at  Oxford.  Jean  must  have  the 
proper  nose  for  his  legs. 

"I  once  knew  of  a  half-breed  and  Gordon  setter 
that  drove  foxes  very  fast  and  that  would  take 
foxes  from  any  hound  in  this  vicinity,  but  as  his 
nose  was  not  as  fast  as  his  legs,  he  would  get  a 
check,  and  after  the  hounds  straightened  it  out  for 
him,  he  would  outrun  them  again.  Now,  which 
style  of  beagle  is  the  best  and  gives  the  most  satis- 
faction when  hunted  alone,  the  sprinter  without  the 
right  nose,  or  the  steady-driving,  keen-scented  dog? 
I  like  Mr.  Stoddard's  letter,  published  some  time 
ago,  but  do  not  like  a  dog  with  a  'farm-horse'  jog. 
I  believe  in  the  hustling,  level-headed,  sure-scented, 
staying,  road-horse  style  of  beagle." 

And  Mr.  Buckstaff  comes  back  in  rebuttal  in  a 
sportsmanlike  manner,  chaffing  his  critics  and 
apologizing  for  some  of  his  interpretations  and  use 
of  words,  ending  a  lively  discussion  from  his  home 
in  Oshkosh,  Wisconsin,  in  January,  1895,  with: 
"When  I  wrote  you  in  regard  to  speed  and  nose  in 
beagles,  it  was  after  reading  the  reports  of  the 
National  trials  in  two  great  sporting  journals  and 
several  lesser  ones,  and  I  gathered  the  data  for  my 
letter  from  them.    It  now  looks  as  if  the  saying  of 


110  Forty  Years  Beagling 

an  old  lady  I  once  knew  is  true,  that  'the  news- 
papers is  a  passel  of  lies.'  We  gullible,  simple- 
minded  Westerners  believe  all  we  see  in  the  papers, 
and  I  had  begun  to  think  it  was  a  mere  oversight 
that  Royal  Rover  did  not  get  a  better  place  in  the 
National  trials.  But  it  seems  now  as  though  it  was 
the  decision  of  deliberate,  cool,  judicial  minds  work- 
ing under  the  'spotting  system,'  which  I  take  for 
granted  is  responsible  for  Rover  being  dropped 
after  his  heat  with  Buckshot.  But  as  I  said  in  my 
letter,  the  judges  might  put  a  new  light  on  the 
matter  if  they  chose  to  answer  my  question;  so  my 
object  has  been  accomphshed,  and  I  have  learned 
how  judges  decide  at  a  field  trial.  But  I  am  in 
no  wise  convinced  that  the  system  is  right.  'Out 
of  the  mouths  of  judges  ye  shall  hear  wisdom.'  Let 
us  hear  some  of  Mr.  Turpin's  remarks:  'Buckshot 
showed  fully  as  good  nose,  fully  as  good  hunting 
sense,  as  Rover,  and  far  greater  speed.  ...  In 
the  race  he  led  most  of  the  time,  and  picked  out  v. 
great  majority  of  the  turns.'  What  business  had 
Rover  to  be  in  the  lead  at  any  time  of  a  dog  with 
'far  greater  speed  and  fully  as  good  a  nose?'  What 
was  Buckshot  doing  when  this  dog  Rover,  with 
fully  as  good  a  nose  as  Buckshot,  but  so  lacking  in 
speed  that  he  dropped  out  after  the  heat,  was  lead- 
ing him? 


Speed  Versus  Nose  111 

''Picking  up  the  turns  I  understand  is  the  turn 
on  the  track  where  the  rabbit  turns  or  picks  up  the 
trail,  if  the  dog  runs  by  the  turn.  Now,  what  busi- 
ness had  Rover  to  pick  up  even  a  small  part  of  these 
turns?  Was  Buckshot  so  far  behind  that  Rover 
picked  up  the  turn  before  Buckshot  arrived,  or  was 
Buckshot  ahead,  and  Rover  came  up  and  picked 
up  the  turns  before  Buckshot  could?  It's  all  a  mys- 
tery how  Rover  could  at  any  time  be  either  in  the 
lead  or  pick  up  losses  first.  Now,  I  don't  mean  to 
insinuate  or  intimate  that  judges  did  not  decide 
these  races  as  fairly  as  they  possibly  could,  for  I 
have  seen  several  heats  between  very  fast  dogs  and 
dogs  somewhat  slower  and  know  how  hard  it  is  to 
suit  all  views  of  the  case.  If  it  ever  were  my  mis- 
fortune to  be  a  judge  at  a  trial  I  should  have  the 
Vindsplitter'  run  alone  for  a  while,  and  see  what 
kind  of  a  show  he  would  make.  I  think  many  of  our 
beagle  men  and  some  of  oui^  judges  would  be  sur- 
prised at  the  difference  he  would  show  in  work  done 
that  way  as  compared  with  work  done  in  a  race 
with  a  slower  dog.  Before  the  game  is  afoot  he 
has  not  the  time  or  ability  to  take  an  old  trail 
and  work  the  rabbit  up.  He  has  got  to  go  bird-dog 
fashion  and  jump  his  rabbit,  and  when  he  overruns 
he  has  not  the  help  of  the  slower  dog  to  aid  him  pick 
it  up.     He  becomes  'foxey,'  when  hunting  with  a 


112  Forty  Years  Beagling 


slower  dog,  takes  one  trail  away  from  him  by  speed, 
and  watches  him  on  the  turns. 

"I  have  just  such  a  hound,  and  I  know  from 
experience  that  any  beagle  judge  that  I  know  of 
would  give  him  the  decision  over  Rover.  If  nothing 
happens,  I  shall  send  him  to  the  Eastern  trials  next 
year,  and  hope  this  description  of  him  will  not 
prejudice  the  judges  against  him. 

"I  don't  blame  Mr.  Kreuder  for  buying  Buck- 
shot and  all  the  fast  dogs  he  can  find,  if  he  never 
had  a  beagle  worthy  the  man  that  could  not  keep 
within  fifteen  or  twenty  minutes  of  the  best  beagle 
livinpr  on  a  rabbit  trail.  I  never  had  the  misfortune 
to  see  such  a  dog  myself.  We  don't  breed  such 
beagles  in  the  West.  I  have  one  regret  in  regard 
to  the  National  trials  that  Buckshot  and  Frank 
Forest  did  not  run  a  heat  together.  It  would  have 
been  interesting  to  have  witnessed  the  result.  An- 
other word,  and  I  wdll  close.  Mr.  Clark  judged  the 
Northwestern  trials  on  the  same  lines  that  the  Na- 
tional trials  were  judged,  I  should  think,  and  now 
I  have  no  doubt  more  Western  men  are  of  my 
opinion  that  the  system  is  wrong.  In  conclusion, 
please  allow  me  to  withdraw  the  offensive  word 
'easily'  from  my  version  of  the  way  in  which  Rover 
beat  Nell  R.  If  he  beat  her  at  all,  that  is  enough. 
But  the  excuse  made  that  she  was  tired  from  a  heat 


Speed  Versus  Nose  113 

run  the  day  before  is  rather  a  hard  one  on  the  bitch. 
Yet  ]Mr.  Reed  says  he  breeds  for  staying  quahties 
and  bottom.  Send  a  bitch  West,  Mr.  Reed,  and 
I  will  breed  her  to  a  dog  that  won't  get  tired  out 
in  a  day  or  a  week  either,  and  won't  charge  you  a 
cent." 

And  then  Mr.  H.  L.  Kreuder,  President  of  the 
National  Beagle  Club  of  America,  comes  out  with 
his  ideas  of  what  men  enter  beagles  in  bench  shows 
and  field  trials  for  when  he  states  in  Forest  and 
Stream,  of  May  18th,  1895,  that  "At  bench  shows 
an  exhibitor  has  one  of  tvro  objects  in  view  when 
making  his  entries.  It  is  either  to  win  the  prizes 
or  dispose  of  the  dog.  At  field  trials  but  one  motive 
prompts  one  in  making  entries,  and  that  is  to  win." 

Xow  it  would  seem  that  ]\Ir.  J.  F.  Stoddard,  of 
George tov/n,  Xew  York,  was  not  anything  but  a 
lazy  hunter,  if  his  remarks  which  follow  anent  his 
ideas  of  hunting  with  the  beagle,  as  written  by  him 
in  Jmie,  1895,  are  any  criterion  of  his  enthusiasm 
for  the  merry  httle  hound.  For  he  says:  "Since 
writing  for  your  interesting  paper  two  or  three 
months  ago,  beagle  items  have  seemed  scarce,  so 
perhaps  it  would  not  be  intruding  to  again  venture 
an  opinion  or  two  concerning  working  beagles. 
Xow  in  regard  to  a  hunter,  a  broken  beagle,  give 
me  one  that  I  can  take  to  the  brush,  sit  down  on  a 


114  Forty  Years  Beagling 

log,  and  the  dog  knows  enough  to  start  and  follow 
a  rabbit  and  stick  to  it  without  my  following  him 
up  to  keep  him  going. 

"I  am  too  lazy  to  run  behind  the  hound  in  order 
to  have  the  hound  run  the  rabbit.  This  applies  to 
a  broken  dog,  not  a  puppy,  as  a  young  dog  is  apt 
to  be  timid,  and  must  have  the  assurance  of  the 
master's  presence,  or  a  broken  dog  to  run  with.  I 
call  no  beagle  a  good  hunter  that  does  not  go  to 
work  as  soon  as  freed  from  restraint,  if  it  is  to  run 
nothing  more  than  a  mouse;  for  if  he  has  the 
requisite  propensities  he  will  not  follow,  a  perfect 
picture  of  docility,  at  your  heel  and  wait  for  you 
to  start  the  rabbit.  Just  one  hour  of  such  work 
as  that,  considering  my  excitable  disposition,  would 
retire  him  to  his  kennel  or  his  grave  forever. 

"Now,  allowing  we  have  a  worker,  we  patiently 
await,  after  reaching  the  brush,  the  starting  of  a 
rabbit.  His  presence  is  soon  known  by  the  silver- 
tongued  voice  of  the  hound.  Then  if  his  scent  is 
not  at  fault  and  he  has  hunting  sense  and  a  level 
head  to  guide  him.  Bunny  must  soon  be  on  foot  for 
parts  unknown.  Two  to  one  he  makes  one  or  two 
turns  to  get  his  bearings,  and  to  throw  off  the  hound 
if  possible,  which,  finding  impossible,  he  flies  to  the 
farthest  end  of  the  brush,  and  there  makes  turn 
after  turn  while  you  are  working  and  puffing  to  get 


Speed  Versus  Nose  115 

up  to  the  hunt.  But  stop  a  moment!  If  the  dog 
is  a  true,  strong-scented,  resolute  hunter,  and  can 
follow  without  fault,  the  rabbit  will  probably  soon 
be  back  near  his  starting  point,  so  you  might  as  well 
stay  where  you  are  and  listen  to  the  music.  If  the 
dog  is  a  quitter,  or  his  nose  is  at  fault,  or  he  is  un- 
able to  run  a  double  circle,  you  had  surely  better 
stand  still  and  save  your  strength,  as  the  dog  will 
soon  come  and  the  hunt  be  up. 

"Oh,  by  the  way,  somebody  spoke  of  speed. 
Well,  if  the  dog  isn't  a  sticker  or  hasn't  the  best  of 
scent,  the  faster  he  runs  the  sooner  he'll  be  back 
to  you  without  the  rabbit.  Allowing  he  is  a  sticker, 
and  has  the  best  of  scent,  combined  with  a  good 
deal  of  intelligence,  he  will  not  run  faster  than, 
by  his  sense  of  smell,  he  knows  he  is  right. 

"Give  me  a  strong,  resolute,  active,  intelligent, 
sure-scented  dog,  who  loves  the  chase  and  runs 
steady  and  true,  and  sticks  till  the  hunt  is  over.  I 
have  no  objection  to  the  speed  of  any  beagle  under 
15  inches,  provided  none  of  the  above  named  requi- 
sites are  sacrificed  to  obtain  it.  As  any  animal  will 
redouble  his  efforts  to  escape  the  more  scared  he 
becomes,  it  stands  to  reason  it  will  get  as  far  from 
the  danger  as  possible.  So  the  rabbit  will  make 
larger  circles  ahead  of  a  fast,  sure  dog  than  a  slower 
one." 


116  Forty  Years  Beagling 


Mr.  Pottinger  Dorsey,  in  an  opinion  written  in 
the  American  Stock-Keeper,  gives  as  his  belief  that 
when  a  rabbit  is  run  stiff  to  death  by  beagles  that 
"They  die  of  spasmodic  cramp  from  overexertion 
of  their  muscles,  or  from  an  overtaxed  heart." 

Mr.  Dorsey  evidently  had  some  trouble  with  some 
or  rather  one  of  his  beagles  at  a  certain  field  trial. 
The  hound's  name  was  Fade,  and  Mr.  Kreuder  in 
a  previous  issue  of  the  American  Stock-Keeper  had 
referred  to  this  hound  as  a  mongrel,  who  had  been 
purchased  from  a  toll-gate  keeper's  son,  whom  the 
dog  had  followed  in  his  search  for  a  home.  So  Mr. 
Dorsey  gets  back  at  the  President  of  the  National 
Beagle  Club  in  the  following  letter:  "I  read  the 
article  appearing  in  your  last  issue,  written  by  Mr. 
Kreuder,  and  w^as  disgusted  at  the  manner  in  which 
he  spoke  of  my  dog,  Pade,  stating  I  bought  him 
from  the  toll-gate  keeper's  son,  whom  the  dog  had 
followed  in  his  search  for  a  home. 

"Now,  Mr.  Kreuder,  you  well  knew  the  assertion 
was  false  when  you  made  it.  You  know  this  dog 
was  bred  by  Mr.  Charles  Shotta,  and  sold  by  him 
to  Mr.  Jones,  and  I  bought  him  from  Mr.  Jones. 
I  want  Mr.  K.  to  plainly  understand  the  word  of 
the  above  gentleman  will  be  accepted  as  truth  as 
soon  as  any  statement  he  can  make  as  to  Pade  being 
a  beagle;  he  was  accepted  by  the  field-trial  com- 


Speed  Versus  Nose  117 


mittee  as  a  beagle,  allowed  to  fill  and  money  paid 
in.  Then  the  word  was  given  to  go,  and  he  was 
judged  as  winner  of  first  in  13-inch  class. 

"Then  the  dog  was  too  much  beagle  for  Mr. 
Kreuder,  and  he  took  on  himself  to  run  the  club  and 
succeeded  in  disqualifying  the  dog,  keeping  the 
winnings  and  entrance  money  also.  Of  course, 
everyone  acquainted  with  the  circumstances,  knows 
the  whole  thing  was  illegal,  as  the  dog  was  accepted, 
run  and  won.  I  should  have  sued  and  recovered 
by  law. 

"How  much  Mr.  K.  would  have  enjoyed  having 
some  of  Fade's  'lightning'  in  Frank  Forest  last 
fall,  when  he  made  that  famous  champion  heat! 
From  what  I  can  learn  from  parties  witnessing  the 
so-called  heat,  Frank  would  not  have  overtaken  the 
rabbit  if  it  had  been  riding  on  the  back  of  a  dry- 
land terrapin.  The  fact  is  the  prize  should  have 
been  withheld  for  lack  of  merit. 

"I  thought  field  trials  were  held  to  ascertain 
when  merit  existed.  Frank  Forest  did  not  win 
absolute  in  the  field  and  his  championship  was  made 
a  present  to  him.  A  dog  to  win  a  champion  stake 
should  at  least  make  a  good  driving  chase,  not  pot- 
ter around  a  little  while  and  be  ordered  up  and 
pronounced  a  field-trial  champion,  which  gives 
room  for  a  lot  of  rot  in  advertisement,  which  is  mis- 


118  Forty  Years  Beagling 

leading  to  the  public.  Mr.  Kreuder,  if  you  have 
not  satisfied  your  revenge  for  Fade  whaling  your 
dogs  so  completely,  make  up  another  story  and  get 
satisfaction." 


CHAPTER   VII 

STANDARD   VERSUS   JUDGE 

NEXT    an    argument    on    "Standard    or 
Judge"  is  started  by  "Comedy,"  brought 
about  by  letters  of  Dr.   Mills  and  Mr. 
Zimmer     ("Debonair")     which    appeared    in    the 
American   Stock-Keeper   at   this   time    (October, 
1895),  in  which  this  authority  backs  up  the  two 
former  gentlemen  and  argues  that  their  letters  are 
well  taken  and  very  much  to  the  point  and  goes  on 
to  say:     "So  long  as  the  matters  rested  with  the 
terrier  men,  so  long  was  I  satisfied  to  let  it  rest,  but 
now  that  it  is  touched  on  ye  by  the  hound'  I  feel 
that  I  should  hke  to  say  a  word  or  two.     Our 
Gloversville  friend  is  right  when  he  remarks  that 
*Some  men  who  have  judged  this  breed  [beagle], 
in  times  past  could  do  some  thinking  to  advantage.' 
For  we  scarcely  ever  see  the  prizes  awarded  to  dogs 
of  the  same  type.    At  some  shows  we  see  the  first 
go  to  a  long-bodied  dog  which  favors  the  Basset  or 
Dachshund  shape,  and  the  second  to  a  dog  that  is 
perhaps  good  in  body  but  whose  head  is  anything 
but  that  of  a  beagle  and  with  ears  and  eyes  like  a 
terrier ;  truly,  'how  long  since  the  beagle  must  have 
a  terrier  eye?' 

119 


120  Forty  Years  Beagling 

"I,  too,  am  in  favor  of  a  cobby  body,  and  I  think 
all  men  that  are  looking  for  staying  qualities  are 
of  the  same  taste.  Of  course,  I  can't  overlook  the 
fact  that  we  get  more  dog  if  we  get  a  longer  body, 
and  I  am  inclined  to  think  that  such  a  type  is  less 
likely  to  throw  oversized  hounds,  but  is  it  not  more 
creditable  to  breed  one  or  two  good  typical  beagles 
than  a  lot  of  long,  low  hounds  that  put  their  growth 
in  length? 

"The  question  of  head  is  rather  hard  to  put  on 
paper,  but  with  all  due  respect  to  the  different 
owners  of  the  dogs  mentioned  and  to  the  ones  un- 
mentioned,  some  perhaps  I  cannot  refer  to  because 
I  have  never  seen  them,  but  the  type  that  I  con- 
sider right  and  to  be  most  sought  for  are  such  as 
are  to  be  seen  on  such  dogs  as  imported  Lonely, 
bitch,  and  Bowman,  dog,  and  in  small  dogs  I  very 
much  admire  the  head  of  Laick's  'Roy.'  I  only 
mention  these  hounds  to  describe  what  I  consider 
a  proper  head  for  a  beagle  besides  which  they  are 
good  in  bone,  coat  and  body.  Koyal  Kreuger,  I 
have  heard  much  of,  but  somehow  have  always 
missed  seeing  him  and  I  am  only  acquainted  with 
the  owner  of  one  of  the  dogs  mentioned,  so  that  I 
have  no  interest  in  writing  of  them. 

"While  writing,  I  have  before  me  some  measure- 
ments which  I  have  taken  which  I  find  useful  as  a 


Standard  Versus  Judge  121 


criterion,  if  I  have  occasion  to  put  the  tape  measure 
over  any  dog  that  takes  my  eye.  I  find  that  the 
head  of  a  dog  about  15  inches  high  averages  about 
7y2  inches  long,  and  girth  of  head  double  that  or 
very  nearly.  Some  of  the  Enghsh  dogs  do  not  grow 
much  over  13  inches,  girth  of  head,  but  the  cheeky, 
throaty  hounds,  whose  voices  are  usually  deeper 
have  more  head  girth;  girth  of  muzzle  from  7  to 
7%  inches ;  a  good  pair  of  ears  set  on,  low  measured, 
naturally  on,  and  a  head  will  go  from  17  to  17% 
inches,  such  a  dog  will  have  deep  flews  and  consid- 
erable dewlap ;  the  eyes  I  prefer  large  as  described 
by  the  standard,  also  I  prefer  them  wide  apart,  so 
that  the  front  edges  of  the  ears  are  very  little 
farther  apart  than  the  outside  corners  of  the  eyes, 
this  latter  marks  the  beagle  characteristic  strongly. 
"For  neck,  I  prefer  a  fair  length,  but  not  enough 
to  make  the  body  long,  as  I  consider  it  almost  im- 
possible to  get  a  long  neck  without  more  length  of 
body  than  I  care  for,  as  I  find  that  from  the  tip 
of  the  nose  to  set-on  of  tail  in  the  dogs  I  look  upon 
as  beagles  in  body,  measure  about  28  inches  to  a 
15-inch  dog  and  some  less.  I  know  of  one  13-inch 
bitch  that  measures  but  24  inches,  and  to  bear  out 
the  staying  qualities  statement,  she  has  run  a  fox 
track  over  24  hours  right  away.  I  think  most  of 
the  measmxments  quoted  here  for  a  15-inch  dog 


122  Forty  Years  Beagling 


would  be  about  in  line  with  the  standard  as  laid 
down  by  the  Beagle  Club,  and  it  is  by  such  a  stand- 
ard that  all  beagle  men  should  insist  on  having  their 
hounds  judged,  and  if  as  'Debonair'  says,  such 
standard  does  not  meet  the  views  of  the  representa- 
tive beagle  men,  but  I,  for  one,  am  not  in  favor  of 
any  change,  for  I  consider  it  has  been  the  aim  of 
most  breeders  to  breed  to  that  standard  and  any 
radical  change  therein  would  be  an  injustice  to 
them. 

"If  it  is  to  please  the  views  of  those  who  have  a 
dog  or  two  that  does  not  conform  pretty  nearly  to 
the  standard,  it  would  be  a  still  greater  injustice 
to  those  who  have  spent  both  time  and  money  to 
produce  a  typical  beagle. 

"No,  let  us  breed  to  the  standard  as  laid  down 
and  insist  on  having  judges  go  by  the  standard, 
and  if  we  see  they  do  not,  why  I  am  sure  our  friend 
the  American  Stock-Keeper  will  gladly  welcome 
any  honest  criticism  that  is  made  in  good  faith, 
such  as  I  have  intended  this  to  be. 

"There  is  one  thing  more  I  want  to  refer  to,  and 
that  is  exhibitors  who  try  to  catch  the  eye  or  ear 
of  a  judge,  either  before  the  class  goes  into  the  ring, 
or  at  the  time  they  go  in,  sometimes  by  posting  the 
judge  by  saying,  'this  is  my  dog  Charter,  by  Scav- 
enger Colombine,  he  took  first  and  special  at  P. 


Standard  Versus  Judge  123 

last  year.'  Or,  when  the  class  is  called  there  is  a 
blue  or  red  ribbon  on  the  dog's  collar.  Is  this 
right?  is  this  fair  to  the  exhibitor  who,  through 
some  engagement,  is  unable  to  be  present  to  handle, 
perhaps,  his  one  or  two  dogs  he  has  carefully  bred, 
and  for  whom  the  rich  breeder  has  no  more  respect 
than  I  have  for  some  'trundle  tail'  type?  Is  it  for 
the  good  of  any  breed  that  judges  will  allow  them- 
selves to  be  so  biased  or  that  exhibitors  will  so  dis- 
honor themselves?" 

And  *'Chicasaw"  at  about  the  same  time  has  this 
to  say  in  the  same  magazine  on  "Standard  or  Indi- 
vidual Opinions":  "I  think  I  will  elect  to  write  my 
little  say  on  this  subject  under  the  above  caption 
as  I  think  it  more  definitely  defines  the  chasm  which 
seems  to  divide  the  ideas  that  some  of  our  judges 
appear  to  have  and  the  standard  which  they  should 
uphold.  I  would  like  to  know  how  many  judges 
study  the  standard  intelligently,  which  means  care- 
fully, and  then  seek  to  fit  the  dogs  to  them?  Do 
they  not  gather  their  conceptions  of  what  a  good 
dog  should  be  from  the  winners  they  find  on  the 
benches? 

"There  are  few  men  who  can  define  the  standard 
properly.  Your  Gloversville  friend  refers  to  cob- 
biness  in  a  beagle.  I  am  not  a  beagle  man,  further 
than  I  like  to  see  the  little  hounds  and  hear  their 


124  Forty  Years  Beagling 

cry,  still  a  dog  of  the  cobby  build  of  Ch.  Royal 
Kreuger,  Ch.  Lonely,  Bowman  and  but  one  or  two 
more  I  could  mention,  catches  my  eye  for  the 
eternal  fitness  of  things,  very  much  quicker  than 
would  Molly,  Ch.  Twintwo,  or  Wixom's  Dorcas, 
I  think  her  name  is,  which  are  long  backed,  if  I 
remember  rightly.  There  never  will  be  a  consensus 
of  opinion  upon  different  values  in  a  standard. 
*A'  judges  St.  Bernards;  he  must  have  type,  ex- 
treme quality,  markings  and  all  that  go  to  make  a 
good  St.  Bernard  head,  and  if  a  dog  is  able  to 
round  the  ring  without  falling  over,  he'll  get  the 
prize,  sure,  provided  he  has  the  requisite  head 
properties.  Next  show^  comes  along  'B,'  a  judge 
who  believes  head  properties,  markings,  type,  etc., 
easy  enough  to  breed,  sound  legs  and  active  move- 
ment are  the  sine  qua  nmis  he  must  look  out  for, 
and  if  he  does  not  take  care  'B'  will  do  more  harm 
than  good,  however  requisite  it  is  that  these  partic- 
ular dogs  should  have  better  'understandings.' 

"Standards  scale  the  value  of  points,  and  their 
numbers  show  their  relative  value,  but  how  many 
judges  are  there  in  America  today,  that  if  tackled 
in  the  ring,  could  give  tables  of  point  values  cor- 
rectly or  even  approximately  of  the  majority  of  the 
breeds  they  handle?  Still,  this  should  be,  in  my 
estimation,  for  the  basis  of  a  true  judge's  capabil- 


Standard  Versus  Judge  125 


ities.  In  my  idea,  a  true  judge  is  one  who,  mindful 
of  the  standard,  weighs  each  point  in  its  proper 
relation  to  the  whole.  A  woman  may  have  beauti- 
ful eyes,  but  if  she  has  a  flat  nose  and  a  humpback, 
she  does  not  appeal  to  one  as  a  handsome  woman. 
It  is  not  from  the  super-excellence  of  any  one  point 
that  breeders  evolve  perfection.  It  is  rather  from 
the  selection  of  animals  that,  not  superlatively  good 
in  one  point,  are  good  all  round.  How  often  do 
you  hear  some  judge,  when  questioned  as  to  his 
decisions,  on  say  a  fox-terrier,  to  make  it  easy,  and 
it  is  pointed  out  to  him  how  large  the  dog's  ears  are, 
how  full  in  eye,  and  short  in  muzzle  it  is,  exclaim, 
'Ah!  but  I  couldn't  get  away  from  his  beautiful 
front!'  Do  forelegs  and  shoulders  constitute  the 
alpha  and  omega  of  a  fox-terrier?  Not  much! 
Give  me  the  dog  that,  as  a  whole,  comes  nearer  to 
the  ideal  set  forth  by  the  standard.  Can  Major 
Taylor  tell  us  what  standard  he  has  had  in  his  mind 
when  placing  some  of  the  field-trial  dogs  high  up 
in  the  scale  of  honor  at  dog  shows?  He  had  formed 
ideas  of  his  own.  Type  was  one  thing,  and  seeming 
ability  to  gallop,  which  any  setter,  not  deformed, 
should  be  able  to  do,  was  another,  and  'another'  got 
the  verdict. 

"^\^at  are  we  to  think  of  a  judge  who  gives  three 
money  prizes  to  three  dogs,  each  different  in  its 


126  Forty  Years  Beagling 

general  make-up?  To  be  kind,  I  should  say  that 
the  judge  did  not  know  what  he  did  want,  and  that 
while  recognizing  the  value  of  certain  points,  he 
recognized  them  individually,  and  not  as  he  should 
do  collectively.  One  could  scribble  on  this  track 
till  the  end  of  your  valuable  paper,  but  I  really  do 
believe  that  some  of  our  judges  should  be  taught 
a  realization  of  the  importance  of  the  duties  they 
assume,  and  the  power  they  have  to  make  or  mar 
a  breed.  Perhaps  some  judges  may  ask  me  what 
I  would  do  with  a  class  of  dogs,  none  of  which 
really  came  up  to  standard  requirements,  but  were 
not  bad  enough  to  turn  out  of  the  ring.  Beyond 
admitting  that  sometimes  judges  are  misunder- 
stood when  they  face  such  a  troublous  condition,  I 
will  excuse  myself." 

Then  Mr.  Pottinger  Dorsey  of  New  Market, 
Maryland,  opens  the  1896  season  in  the  American 
Stock-Keeper  on  the  damage  done  the  beagle  breed 
due  to  the  bench-show  craze  in  the  following  words : 
"Re  the  marked  improvement  of  the  beagle  of  to- 
day in  'Beagle  Gossip,'  published  in  your  issue  of 
January  4th,  I  think  this  subject  may  be  reviewed 
from  two  standpoints.  From  the  one  from  which 
I  view  it  the  beagles  of  today  (as  a  rule)  are  just 
recovering  from  the  great  injury  they  have  re- 
ceived from  the  bench-show  craze.     I  forewarned 


Standard  Versus  Judge  127 


breeders  not  to  turn  a  deaf  ear  to  running  qualities 
in  order  to  get  that  which  was  so  attractive,  direct 
descendants  of  champion  bench-show  winners,  and, 
if  possible  get  a  lot  of  first  prizes  placed  to  the 
credit  of  their  dog  to  enable  him  to  make  a  suc- 
cessful stud  dog,  when  the  chances  are  the  dog  was 
no  more  use  to  a  man  in  the  chase  than  a  pug  dog. 
What  could  be  expected  from  such  a  line  of  breed- 
ing when  a  majority  of  dogs  used  in  stud  were 
perfectly  useless  in  the  field?     If  a  dog  is  a  good 
looker  and  runner  also,  so  much  the  better,  but  it 
matters  not  how  well-formed  a  dog  is;  if  he  is  a 
loafer  never  allow  him  to  transmit  those  qualities. 
Now,  for  my  part,  I  am  glad  to  breed  to  say,  such 
beagles  as  old  Music,  Glory,  Mars,  Diana,  Zode, 
Vesper,  Mary,  Juliet,  Starter,  and  others  that  have 
joined  the  majority  and  will  always  stand  as  bright 
lights  in   the  beagle   world.     Diana,    I   presume, 
was  the  best  beagle  ever  raised  in  Maryland,  at 
any  rate  she  was  the  best  one  I  ever  saw  in  the 
chase.     I  am  glad  the  people  are  awaking  to  the 
idea  that  they  must  breed  their  dogs  for  that  which 
they  were  intended,  a  dog  for  the  chase.    Breed  to 
dogs  of  merit,  and  continue  it  for  a  while  and  those 
who  are  most  disgusted  with  the  breed  will  become 
ardent  admirers  of  the  gamey  sport-giving  beagle." 


nr 


CHAPTER    VIII 

JUDGING   FIELD    TRIALS 

HIS  ever-interesting  topic,  and  the  reasons 
I  of  the  why  and  wherefore  of  the  then  sys- 
tem of  adjudicating  winners,  as  called  for 
by  the  National  Beagle  Club  Rules,  caused  as  much 
discussion  then,  a  quarter  of  a  century  ago,  as  it 
is  today  in  a  prominent  sporting  joui-nal  of  the 
day,  where  there  are  some  advocates  of  the  point- 
scoring  system  as  there  was  in  those  days,  though 
I  am  sm^e  that  the  present-day  critics,  who  want 
the  rules  changed  to  a  point-scoring  system,  knew 
nothing  of  the  then  efforts  to  have  the  rules 
changed,  which  met  with  little  favor  and  were 
thi^own  in  the  discard.  Mr.  H.  L.  Kreuder  opened 
the  argument,  saying:  "We  have  now  had  beagle 
field  trials  for  five  or  six  successive  years  and  such 
practical  results  toward  the  advancement  and  bet- 
terment of  the  breed  as  is  Hable  to  accrue  from  such 
work,  should  have  manifested  itself  by  this  time  in 
a  tangible  form.  Has  it?  A  mild  'yes'  and  em- 
phatic 'no'  would  be  suitable  answers.  Having 
used  and  put  to  a  practical  test  such  ideas  as  have 

128 


Judging  Field  Trials  129 

been  advanced  heretofore,  I  think  the  time  has 
come  when  new  theories  should  be  introduced  to 
practical  working  methods,  to  acquire  the  purpose 
of  a  specialty  club,  i.e.,  advancement  of  the  breed. 

"As  bench  shows  are  now  conducted,  a  useless 
dog  for  all  purposes  may  become  a  prominent 
champion.  The  same  principle  applying  to  field 
trials,  inasmuch  as  the  most  wretched  specimen  in 
form  may  acquire  high  honors  there,  and  how  does 
either  one  advance  the  breed  in  the  broad  sense  of 
the  term? 

"With  a  view  to  overcoming  what  is  now  a  radical 
wealviiess  (from  this  standpoint),  I  propose  in- 
troducing at  the  next  quarterly  meeting  of  the 
National  Beagle  Club,  a  scoring  system  for  reduc- 
ing each  dog's  field  and  bench  qualities  to  an  aver- 
age, thereby  establishing  and  recording  each  dog's 
actual  merit  in  both  forms,  winners,  losers  and  all. 
Under  such  a  system  each  entry  at  trials  w^ill  be 
first  scored  for  its  actual  bench-show  merit  by  a 
practical  judge  of  such  form,  then  the  dog  to  pass 
into  the  hands  of  judges  for  field-trial  quality  form 
and  each  dog  scored  at  termination  of  heat.  Those 
scoring  above  a  certain  average  (for  field  work) 
to  pass  into  2nd  series,  the  same  to  apply  for  3rd 
series,  with  a  higher  average.  The  winners  of  each 
class  to  be  those  scoring  the  highest  combined  aver- 


130  Forty  Years  Beagling 

age  of  both  field  and  bench  qualities  and  awards  to 
be  rendered  by  the  field-trial  committee. 

"Under  this  system,  each  owner  to  receive  a 
certificate  of  the  dog's  work  and  form,  and,  unless 
radical  defects  may  be  discovered  in  my  calcula- 
tions, the  most  practical  results  can  thus  be  obtained 
in  advancing  a  breed  by  a  specialty  club.  This,  of 
course,  is  a  somewhat  brief  synopsis  of  a  radical 
change  and  is  a  subject-matter  for  reflection  and 
discussion,  to  be  eventually  reduced  to  a  satisfactory 
working  system. 

"I  bring  this  matter  out  at  this  time  for  two 
reasons.  First,  to  draw  from  the  many  members 
and  breeders,  and  others,  a  liberal  exchange  of 
views  through  the  ever-available  and  obliging  press 
and  secondly,  to  give  other  beagle  clubs  than  the 
National  sufficient  time  to  consider,  act  or  adopt 
the  scoring  system  if  found  advisable." 

The  two  cards,  one  for  show  and  the  other  for 
field  qualities,  appear  in  the  sporting  press  of  the 
day,  a  replica  of  which  is  herewith  appended. 


Judging  Field  Trials  131 


JUDGE'S  SCORING  CARD  FOR  SHOW  QUALITY 

Name  of  Dog 

Judges  shall  credit  dogs  with  the  maximum  as  per  standard 
if  warranted,  or  fractional  parts  thereof,  according  to  their 
judgment  of  merit. 

Standard     Awarded 

Head— Typical  skull 5 

Typical  ears   15 

Typical   eyes    5 

Typical   muzzle    10 

Body — Typical  neck    5 

Typical  shoulders  and  chest  ....  10 

Typical  back   and  loins    15 

Typical   spring   ribs    5 

Running    Gear — Forelegs    and    feet.  .  10 

Hips,  thighs,  hind   legs    10 

Coat  and   Stern — Coat    5 

Tail    5 


100 


/  hereby   certify   that  I  have  carefully  scored  the  Beagle 

and  hereby  award points  according 

to  above  standard, 1896. 


Judge  of  Bench  Show  Form. 


132  Forty  Years  Beagling 

CARD   FOR   FIELD   QUALITIES 

Name  of   Dog    

Judges  shall  credit  dogs  with  maximum,  as  per  standard, 

if  warranted,  or   fractional  parts  thereof  according  to  their 

judgment  of  merit.  j^  competition  with 

12       3       4       6       6 

Natural  and  eager  disposition  to 

Imnt 5 

Running  action,  which  should  be 
free,  easy  and  without  ap- 
parent labor    5 

Obedience  when  not  trailing 
started  game,  hunting  likely 
covers  thoroughly  and  speed- 
ily           10 

Trailing  and  starting  game 10 

Taking  trail  first  after  game  is 
started,  other  than  by  dog, 
chances   being   equal    5 

Speediest  work  in  carrying  trail.  .      10 

Truest  work  in  carrying  trail  ...      15 

Marking  game  under  cover 5 

Best  ranging  at  a  loss 5 

Best  hound  voice   10 

Best  endurance 10 

Other  creditable  worlj;  not  spe- 
cially credited    10 

Field  trial    Total    Average    

Bench  show  score    Grand  average    

We  hereby  certify  that  we  have  carefully  scored  the  Beagle 

and  award points  according  to 

above  standard. 

Judge  of  Field  Trials. 

The  Beagle having  been  awarded 

points  for  field  trial  form,  the  said  Beagle  is  hereby  awarded 

a  grand  average  of points  for  combined  merit  and 

prize    in    class    Stakes 

at   National   Beagle    Club's    sixth   annual   field   trial    held   at 

* ,   1896. 

Chairman  Field  Trial  Committee. 


Judging  Field  Trials  133 


Mr.  H.  V.  Jamieson,  of  Melrose,  Massachusetts, 
opens  the  argument  in  reply  to  Mr.  Kreuder's  ideas 
of  the  point  system  with:    "The  scoring  of  beagles 
systematically  as  to  their  actual  worth  in  points, 
standard  form  and  field  merits  being  both  consid- 
ered in  the  final  results  obtained.     The  system  is  a 
most  praiseworthy  one  if  the  millennium  is  Avith  us 
at  last,  and  we  are  about  to  realize  perfection.     I, 
for  one,  would  gladly  see  this  system  adopted  if 
such  is  the  case.     But  what  is  expected  to  be  ob- 
tained from  the  deduction  of  the  two  sets  of  com- 
petent judges?     Evidently  not  any  useful  results, 
but  simply  a  certificate  of  merit  that  will  say  a  dog 
w^as  awarded  the  first  prize  because  it  was  the  best- 
formed  dog  and  showed  the  best  hunting  sense  com- 
bined at  that  stated  time.     But  we  may  not  have 
a  dog's  true  worth  even  then.     There  may  have 
been  better   fielders   and  poorer-formed   dogs,   or 
vice  versa,  among  the  other  prize  winners,  and  we 
have  therefore  given  the  prize  certificate  to  a  dog 
of  mediocrity  and  not  of  perfection  in  either  de- 
partment of  its  supposed  usefulness  to  the  breed 
as  a  progenitor.    We  can  never  look  back  on  that 
dog  as  a  type  in  any  case;  it  simply  was  the  con- 
necting  link   between   field   merit    and    'standard 
form.' 

"Let  me  illustrate  my  point  by  figures:     Sup- 


134  Forty  Years  Beagling 

pose  3  points  represent  perfection  in  either  show 
or  field  merit;  2  points  represent  mediocrity;  1 
point  merit  only.  Xow,  'A'  is  Mr.  King's  dog,  and 
'B'  is  mine.  The  judging  of  the  two  beagles  results 
as  follows:  'A'  scores  3  points  for  form  and  1 
point  for  field  merit;  total,  4  points.  'B'  scores 
1  point  for  form  and  3  points  for  field  merit;  total, 
■i  points.     Which  wins.^ 

"Another  thing:  very  few  beagles  could  be  cor- 
rectly scored  in  standard  form  if  they  were  at  the 
same  time  in  field  condition  or  fitted  to  run  at 
beagle  trials.  Does  not  condition  count  a  good 
deaH  Why,  I  have  known  a  judge  considering 
condition  to  be  of  so  much  value  as  to  give  a  bitch 
nothing,  although  he  acknowledged  her  the  best  one 
in  the  class,  but  must  consider  her  out  of  it  as  she 
was  not  in  condition.  What  if  judges  hke  that 
should  distribute  the  percentages  at  the  show 
pomts  entertainment? 

"I  repeat  then,  what  benefit  is  this  diploma  to 
the  owner  ?  And  if  no  good  to  him,  is  it  of  any  use 
to  anyone  else?  It  tells  the  owner  of  the  dog 
absolutely  nothing  of  that  at  which  he  is  aiming 
that  he  did  not  know  before.  And  are  breeders 
to  be  benefited  in  any  way  if  perfection  were  never 
reached  in  both  scorings?  Xo  better  idea  would 
be  obtained  than  now  in  regard  to  a  beagle's  best 


Judging  Field  Trials  135 


quality.     Let  the  dog  shows  have  their  duties  as 
well  as  the  field  trials  theirs. 

"To  enhance  the  advancement  of  the  breed,  let  a 
specialty  club  offer  a  trophy,  to  be  competed  for  at 
every  show%  for  the  best  beagle  with  a  field  trial 
record,  considering  both  in  judging;  the  one  that 
wins  it  the  most  times  during  the  year  to  retain  the 
trophy  with  the  attending  honors.  The  discriminat- 
ing of  shows  generally  results  in  the  richer  ones 
having  still  more  added  to  their  premium  lists,  and 
the  poorer  ones  are  ignored. 

"To  mix  two  such  widely  separate  qualifications 
as  standard  form  and  field  excellence  would  only 
complicate  the  matter  more,  and  I  can  hardly  see 
the  benefits  to  be  derived.  The  more  plainly  each 
qualification  is  set  forth  the  better  results  w^ill 
necessarily  follow\" 

And  along  comes  "Comedy"  with  his  ideas.  He 
says  Mr.  Kreuder's  letter  is  very  much  to  the  point 
"otherwise  we  could  use  any  kind  of  a  cur  for  just 
simply  rabbit  hunting.  If  wx  are  going  to  hunt 
rabbits  with  beagles  let  us  breed  as  near  the  stand- 
ard as  we  can,  using  our  most  typical  dogs  to  breed 
from,  but,  at  the  same  time  bearing  in  mind  that 
the  beagle  is  a  hunting  dog,  and  not  alone  breed 
for  hunting  traits,  but  give  the  little  fellows  a 
chance  to  learn  how  to  do  their  work.     Of  course, 


136  Forty  Years  Beagling 

if  we  can  find  a  dog  that  is  a  good  typical  specimen, 
with  lots  of  courage  and  hunt  in  him,  that  should 
be  the  dog  we  should  use  in  preference  to  any 
other,  unless,  for  some  very  good  reason. 

''Personally,  I  am  inclined  to  the  belief  that 
nearly  all  beagles  will  hunt  to  a  great  degree  if  only 
given  the  chance,  but  the  trouble  is  that  many  of 
om-  puppies  never  get  a  show  until  they  are  past 
the  time  when  they  ought  to  be  doing  good  work, 
and  have  got  in  the  lazy  habit  of  hanging  around. 
Then  again,  so  many  puppies  are  subject  to  all  the 
ills  that  dogs  are  heir  to  that  they  are  fully  grown 
up  before  they  ever  'get  a  smell'  at  any  game.  The 
growing  demand  for  puppies  and  the  scarcity  of 
good  ones  tempt  a  breeder  to  try  and  raise  some 
during  the  winter  months,  and  unless  he  is  partic- 
ularly well  favored  with  climate,  and  has  the  best 
of  accommodations,  he  does  more  harm  than  good, 
for  if  the  bitch  is  young  she  loses  the  season's  hunt- 
ing and  perhaps  all  the  puppies  as  well. 

"I  think  your  correspondent  is  on  the  right  track; 
let  us  have  type  by  all  means,  in  fact  a  beagle,  and 
I  would  make  a  suggestion  that  in  measuring  dogs, 
when  drawing  for  the  trials,  that  aU  dogs  be  thrown 
out  of  competition  whose  length,  from  tip  of  nose 
to  root  of  tail  is  more  than  double  their  height  at 
shoulder,  or  those  whose  front  legs  are  very  crooked 


Judging  Field  Trials  137 

or  in  any  other  way,  when  they  do  not  fairly  re- 
semble the  type  laid  down  by  the  standard.  If  it 
is  not  practical  to  exclude  the  crooked-legged  dogs, 
it  certainly  should  be  practical  to  exclude  the  long- 
bodied  ones. 

"I  do  not  quite  exactly  agree  with  the  value  of 
the  figures  given  by  Mr.  Kreuder,  but  the  points 
taken,  in  my  estimation,  are  good.  Under  this 
scoring  arrangement,  the  best-balanced  dog  would 
get  placed  or  at  least  make  a  good  showing,  while 
the  good  hunter,  if  of  good  type,  would  be  up  near- 
est the  money.  In  the  'judge's  scoring-card  for 
show  quality,'  I  would  value  skull  as  high  as  ears, 
also  shoulders  and  chest  equal  to  back  and  loins, 
and  give  the  other  five  points  to  coat,  dense  and 
hard. 

"In  the  *card  for  field  qualities,'  I  would  add  to 
the  number  of  points  for  'natui-al  and  eager  dis- 
position to  hunt,'  making  them  at  least  ten,  and 
count  five  for  'obedience,'  etc.  Perhaps  when  we 
have  succeeded  in  getting  our  beagles  as  nervy  as 
fox  terriers,  we  can  afford  to  teach  them  obedience 
more  thoroughly.  I  am  glad  to  see  Mr.  Kreuder 
values  true  working  qualities  and  good  hound  voice, 
while  endurance  should  certainly  be  credited  with 
fully  as  high  a  percentage  as  ten. 

"I  hope  there  are  more  of  your  readers  who  will 


138  Forty  Years  Beagling 

give  us  their  views  on  this  matter,  and  that  it  will 
have  the  good  effect  of  reducing  several  types,  now 
known  as  beagles,  to  the  one  which  is  in  accordance 
with  the  accepted  type." 


CHAPTER    IX 

BONE    IN    THE   BEAGLE 

THE  question  of  the  amount  of  bone  that  a 
typical  beagle  should  have,  and  which  is 
another  of  those  mooted  questions  which 
has  its  partisans,  is  brought  to  the  surface  by  Mr. 
Zimmer,  of  Gloversville,  in  the  Spring  of  1896, 
under  the  nom  de  plume  of  D.  E.  B.  O'Nair.  Mr. 
George  F.  Reed,  of  Barton,  Vermont,  in  criticising 
this  question  of  bone,  opens  in  the  American  Stock- 
Keeper  in  April,  1896,  by  referring  to  Mr.  Zim- 
mer's  article  in  the  previous  issue  as  one  of  the  best 
things  he  has  ever  read  on  the  beagle  in  this  paper. 
He  further  says  that  he  "don't  know  this  writer, 
never  saw  him,  never  have  even  written  him  in  my 
long  term  of  years  in  breeding  beagles,  but — shake ! 
No  bone!    You  are  right. 

"This  great  cry  about  bone  is  all  a  piece  of  non- 
sense to  a  certain  degree.  I  have  become  ac- 
quainted with  some  of  these  'bone  dogs'  and  'bone 
men'  and  they  are  both  alike — no  great  thing  in  a 
hot  drive.  A  beagle  can  have  so  much  bone  he  is 
practically  no  good  for  a  sportsman's  dog.    ^^^lat 

139 


140  Forty  Years  Beagling 

good  can  you  get  out  of  these  great  bone  dogs  for 
a  six  week's  steady  hunting?  There  are  a  few 
bitches,  and  very  few,  that  will  profit  by  being  bred 
to  that  class  of  dog.  I  want  a  beagle  built  in  pro- 
portion all  around,  a  good  practical  all-day  dog, 
one  that  can  be  hunted  hard  the  season  through,  and 
then,  with  a  little  let-up,  be  able  to  go  on  the  bench, 
and  make  a  fair  showing  with  a  good  body,  coat 
and  brush,  good  legs  and  feet,  and  all  in  proportion 
to  his  size. 

"Most  of  the  boys  have  heard  my  ideas  of  breed- 
ing; I  have  followed  one  line,  and  only  one  in 
breeding,  no  grasshopper  blood  in  me.  For  in- 
stance, remember  old  Skip,  Mr.  Editor,  dam  of 
Frank  Forest;  next  oldest  of  hers  I  own  is  Haida, 
a  better  bitch  than  Skip,  barring  head;  Nell  R., 
out  of  Haida  is  next  in  age,  and  then  comes  Mag 
out  of  Nell,  and  thought  by  many  at  Boston  better 
than  her  dam ;  the  youngest  ever  shown  is  Kate  out 
of  Haida,  winner  in  puppy  class.  Please  don't  call 
this  free  advertising,  but  here  are  a  lot  of  practical 
beagles,  good  in  the  field  as  the  record  shows,  and 
bench  winners,  too,  and  they  are  not  all  bone  either. 

"As  I  look  back  over  the  field  trials,  I  don't  see 
any  of  these  bone  beagles  staying  in  the  second 
series.  For  instance,  recall  Jean  Val  Jean,  Buck- 
shot, Wanderer,   Triumph,    Spot,  Nell,   Baronet, 


Bone  in  the  Beagle  141 

Venus  2nd,  and  others  I  can  mention,  these  were 
beagles,  rabbit  drivers  and  pushers  from  beginning 
to  end;  they  had  bone  enough  and  plenty  of  muscle 
to  go  with  it.  I  think  I  know  whom  D.  E.  B. 
O'lNTair  refers  to,  and  what  dogs  he  has  in  his  mind, 
but  of  this  I  will  say  nothing.  When  he  strikes  a 
field  trial  his  cry  will  not  be  for  bone,  but  for  speed 
and  nose,  O'Nair,  and  he  never  will  get  it  out  of 
*all  bone'  either. 

"In  looking  over  the  American  Stock-Keeper 
this  morning  I  read  'Comedy's'  piece,  and  I  see 
he  is  not  one  of  these  'all  bone'  fellows  either.  Now, 
O'Nair,  there  are  not  so  many  of  them  in  the  East 
which  run  that  way  as  you  might  think,  but  what 
there  are  talk  loud  and  often,  but  they  tire  easily 
when  a  good  practical  breeder  gets  a  drive  at  them. 
But  what  took  the  cake  was  this :  I  was  talking  in 
Boston  about  breeding  better  voices  to  some  of  the 
beagles,  and  one  party  says :  'Beed,  you  will  have 
to  do  it  by  breeding  to  one  of  those  English  dogs 
that  has  lots  of  bone.'  Well,  I  didn't  faint,  but  I 
went  out  of  the  hall  and  got  a  sandwich,  and  won- 
dered how  a  beagle  with  a  leg  hke  a  Mastiff  could 
get  a  clear  tenor  voice  like  Quabog  Belle  or  Jack 
Bannerman  by  breeding  to  him.  This  more  bone 
racket  may  catch  a  few  'greenies'  but  it  will  have 
no  weight  with  a  practical  breeder,  or  the  sports- 


142  Forty  Years  Beagling 

man  that  loves  his  little  beagle  for  the  pleasure 
derived  from  the  chase. 

"Give  me  the  beagle  that  stands  on  a  good 
straight  pair  of  legs,  just  bone  enough  to  carry  his 
body,  and  I  will  warrant  when  his  season  of  hunting 
is  over,  he  will  not  be  over  on  his  knees  like  a 
broken  down  horse." 

Then  along  comes  Mr.  C.  O.  Smith  of  Woon- 
socket,  Rhode  Island,  who  says  he  has  had  both 
kinds,  and  finds  the  dogs  with  good  fair  cobby  body 
and  good  bone,  not  too  large  or  too  small,  are  the 
best  hunters  for  an  all-day  hunt. 

And  now  comes  "Hector"  in  a  humorous  vein, 
taking  a  fall  out  of  the  bone  men  when  he  says: 
"Hark!  What  causes  all  this  racket  I  hear?  Is  it 
a  pack  of  beagle  after  a  'bone?'  No,  I  think  not. 
They  do  not  appear  to  be  very  hungry  for  'bones.' 
I  guess  it  is  a  pack  of  beagle  men  on  the  track,  and 
they  are  on  the  right  track,  too,  and  propose  to 
stick  to  it.  They  don't  stop  to  pick  up  'bones.' 
What  good  voices  they  have ;  how  they  harmonize. 
They  are  the  correct  type,  too.  There  must  be  a 
large  pack  of  them.  Yes,  the  woods  are  full  of 
them.  I  am  on  the  same  track,  boys.  My  voice 
is  not  as  good  as  some  of  the  others,  but  it  is  strong 
and  distinct.  No  big,  logy,  slow-poke  beagle  for 
me. 


Bone  in  the  Beagle  143 


"The  kind  of  beagle  I  like,  is  one  that  has  lots  of 
guns  in  him;  active  and  'sandy'  enough  to  kill  a 
woodchuck  nearly  as  large  as  himself;  one  that  is 
able  and  willing  to  hunt  all  day  through  as  deep 
snow  as  I  care  to  wade  myself.  These  quahfica- 
tions  in  a  good,  fairly  well  marked,  show  specimen, 
with  bone  in  proportion  to  his  size,  I  consider  much 
more  valuable  than  surplus  bone.  This  is  the  style 
of  beagle  that  sportsmen  like,  and  the  men  that 
breed  this  style  can  always  find  a  market  for  them 
at  good  prices." 

Mr.  F.  L.  Styne  of  Philadelphia,  Pennsylvania, 
after  reading  the  above  letters  agrees  with  the 
writers  and  further  states  that  his  idea  of  a  beagle 
is  that  he  wants  reasonable  bone,  but  wants  it  in 
proportion  to  size  and  make,  and  anything  more 
than  that  is  unsightly  and  wrong.  He  continues: 
"While  at  the  Philadelphia  show,  one  of  these 
'bone'  men  said  to  me  that  I  should  breed  a  bitch 
I  had  there  to  his  dog  and  get  more  bone.  I  smiled 
but  didn't  bite.  No  lumber  or  cart  horse  type  for 
me.  I  think  some  of  our  judges  are  losing  their 
heads;  I  noticed,  all  around  the  circuit  this  year, 
and  in  nearly  every  instance,  that  type  was  sacri- 
ficed for  that  craze,  heavy  bone.  I  know  some  are 
head  over  heels  after  it;  but  they  can  have  it  for 
me;  give  me  the  straight-leg,  cobby  beagle,  with 


144  Forty  Years  Beagling 

bone  in  proportion,  and  I  will  guarantee  you  he 
will  be  the  most  active  and  speediest,  and  always 
ready  for  a  chase. 

"A  beagle  with  so  much  lumber  in  heavy  bone, 
is  only  a  burden  unto  itself,  and  can't  go  at  all. 
I  hope  some  day  to  see  such  men  as  Zimmer  and 
Wixom  handing  out  the  ribbons;  they  are  men  of 
good  sound  beagle  sense.  I  would  advise  brother 
breeders  to  keep  their  bitches  thin  in  flesh  and  not 
breed  small  bitches  to  big  dogs,  or  you  will  pay  the 
penalty  for  it." 

Now,  what  brought  about  all  this  discussion  on 
*'bone"  was  the  original  article  by  Mr.  Zimmer,  who 
stated  that  "there  are  many  of  our  dogs  of  this 
breed  which  need  more  bone,  no  breeder  will  deny. 
That  there  are  others,  and  plenty  of  them,  too, 
which  have  all  the  bone  they  need  and  all  that  is 
necessary  to  stand  an  all-day  chase,  and  six  days 
of  a  week,  and  all  that  is  required  to  cause  them 
to  look  well  furnished  and  symmetrical,  none, 
with  'common  sense,'  will  deny.  However,  for  a 
year  or  more,  the  cry  has  been  started  by  a  few 
— a  few  who,  for  reasons,  are  interested  in  bone 
— that  all  our  American-bred  beagles  lack  bone. 
They  have  never  failed  to  call  attention  to  this 
point,  of  whoever  was  interested  in  this  breed  and 
I  half  believe  they  have  made  one  half  the  number 


Bone  in  the  Beagle  145 

believe  it;  at  any  rate,  it  begins  to  look  that  way, 
and  if  it  keeps  up  another  year,  the  beagle  with  the 
largest  bone,  regardless  of  the  fact  the  judge  must 
hold  his  head  down  and  gently,  yet  firmly  press  his 
hand  on  his  shoulder,  in  order  to  have  him  come  in 
the  15-inch  class,  will  win  first,  and  all  specials, 
with  some  judges,  and  the  awards  be  considered 
correct  by  a  share  of  the  breeders. 

"Like  a  flock  of  sheep,  get  one  started  in  any 
direction  or  over  any  obstacle  and  away  they  go, 
all  of  them.  Get  the  eye  and  mind  of  breeders  on 
any  one  fashionable  quality  and  it  is  all  half  of  them 
can  see.  They  are  now  looking  for  bone,  and  legs 
which  are  not  perfectly  straight,  bodies  which  are 
too  long;  heads  which  are  not  exactly  right,  will  be 
glanced  at  and  overlooked — if  the  dog  has  bone. 
In  a  short  time  it  will  be  some  other  hobby  that 
some  other  enterprising  breeder  or  speculator  will 
start  and  again  we  are  off  like  chaff  before  the  wind. 
There  is  one  consolation,  it  is  only  chaff  and  other 
light  substances  that  are  blown  away  by  every 
breeze;  the  wheat  waits  and  is  gathered  by  a 
stronger  hand,  and  the  breeder  who  stays  and 
breeds  good  all-round,  practical  hounds — those 
with  good  or  fair  coats,  legs,  feet,  heads,  chests,  and 
loins,  from  11  to  15  inches,  but  with  bone  enough 
to  correspond  with  size  of  dog,  enough  to  carry  him 


146  Forty  Years  Beagling 

all  day  and  every  day — are  sure  to  win  a  reputa- 
tion among  sportsmen,  if  they  do  or  do  not  win  on 
the  bench." 

Now  comes  Mr.  "Joe"  Lewis,  of  Moodus,  Con- 
necticut, in  a  letter  to  the  American  Field,  in  which 
he  enters  in  a  discussion  with  Mr.  Reed,  including 
challenges,  etc.,  which  were  never,  so  far  as  can  be 
found  out,  accepted  by  Mr.  Lewis. 

"Having  read  the  different  articles  on  this  sub- 
ject (Bone  in  Beagles),  I  take  the  liberty  to  write 
you  a  few  lines  on  the  matter  and  give  a  few  facts 
on  the  subject;  also,  a  partial  review  of  the  several 
beagle  trials,  as  it  would  appear  from  several  of 
the  articles  that  the  winners  were  mostly  of  the 
light-boned  type.  It  seems  that  the  record  made 
by  my  kennel  of  beagles  at  the  different  shows  this 
year  has  created  a  good  deal  of  jealousy,  and  sev- 
eral of  the  beagle  men  who  have  failed  to  beat  me 
on  the  show  bench  are  now  doing  their  best  to  injure 
me  by  saying  my  beagles  are  not  the  right  tj^pe 
and  are  not  the  kind  that  make  good  field  dogs, 
and  will  never  be  seen  at  the  field  trials.  Let  them 
have  a  little  patience.  I  shall  enter  beagles  at  the 
field  trials,  and  time  w^ill  tell  whether  they  are  good 
or  not. 

"I  cannot  see  why  Mr.  Reed  should  crow  so  much 
over  his  field  trial  record,  as,  while  his  dogs  have 


Bone  in  the  Beagle  147 

done  good  work  in  the  field,  they  have  also  done 
a  lot  of  poor  work,  as  the  record  shows,  and  what 
kind  of  a  showing  did  they  make  against  such  dogs 
as  Baronet,  Triumph  and  Lady  Novice? 

"If  I  remember  correctly,  the  majority  of  win- 
ners at  the  different  beagle  trials  have  been  dogs  of 
good  bone.  Take  such  dogs  as  Lee  2nd,  Jean  Val 
Jean,  Louis  Fitz  Lee,  Baronet,  Glory,  Spark  R., 
Snyder,  Buckskin,  and  others,  that  I  cannot  call 
to  mind  at  present ;  these  were  nearly  all  as  hea^y 
boned  dogs  as  Ringleader,  and  in  some  cases 
heavier,  and  still  the  cry  goes  up  that  a  good  boned 
hound  cannot  do  good  field  work. 

"In  regard  to  Ringleader,  I  believe  him  to  be  a 
good-proportioned  and  well-balanced  dog,  and  he 
can  stand  any  amount  of  hard  work;  and  I  think 
the  practical  judges  of  the  breed  believe  him  to  be 
a  dog  of  the  right  type,  as  he  has  never  been  beaten 
except  by  his  dam,  Lonely,  and  everyone  that  has 
followed  up  the  dog  shows  knows  very  well  he  has 
been  shown  at  every  show  of  any  importance;  also 
he  is  getting  good  stock,  and  I  shall  be  very  much 
surprised  if  his  stock  do  not  make  good  fielders. 

"I  have  not  the  time  to  hunt  my  beagles  to  any 
extent,  but  I  am  doing  everything  in  my  power  to 
place  them  in  good  hands  w^here  they  will  get  a 
chance  to  show  what  they  can  do.    I  believe  I  am  on 


148  Forty  Years  Beagling 

the  right  track,  and  to  the  few  breeders  who  are 
trying  to  cry  down  my  stock  I  will  make  the  fol- 
lowing proposition:  Beginning  at  the  Providence 
show  I  will  show  Ringleader  against  any  dog  they 
own,  and  Lonely  against  any  bitch  they  own;  or  I 
will  show  the  pair  against  any  brace  they  own;  or 
I  will  show  a  team  of  four  against  any  four  they 
own.  I  will  show  two,  four,  or  six  puppies,  whelped 
August  10,  1895,  sired  by  Ringleader,  against  the 
same  number  sliced  by  any  stud  dog  they  own.  If 
the  Providence  show,  to  be  held  in  September  next, 
will  not  be  convenient,  I  will  make  the  same  offer 
at  any  of  the  large  Spring  shows,  New  York,  Chi- 
cago, or  Boston  preferred.  This  is  a  good  chance  to 
see  what  bone  will  do,  as  from  my  experience  in 
breeding  dogs  it  is  much  easier  to  lose  it  than  to 
gain  it  in  my  breed. 

"Probably  everyone  with  long  hunting  experi- 
ence has  seen  good  rabbit-dogs  with  very  little  true 
beagle  character,  as  there  are  many  mongrels  that 
you  can  break  to  hunt  rabbits  that  can  beat  many 
of  the  field  trial  winners.  If  the  type  and  quality 
of  the  beagle  are  to  be  kept  up,  it  cannot  be  done  by 
breeding  to  a  dog  simply  because  it  has  won  in  the 
field,  as  you  can  lose  more  in  formation  and  quality 
in  two  years  than  you  can  get  back  in  ten.     As 


Bone  in  the  Beagle  149 

proof  of  this,  look  at  the  type  of  English  setters 
that  is  shown  at  the  present  time. 

"In  regard  to  voice,  I  should  think  it  ought  to 
be  known  that  a  large,  strong  dog  would  have  a 
better  hound  voice,  than  a  light  weedy  one.  Jack 
Bannerman  and  Quoboag  Belle  were  both  good 
boned  large  ones,  I  beheve.  From  what  I  have  seen 
at  the  beagle  trials  the  large  ones  nearly  always 
have  the  best  voices.  Stormy,  a  large  coarse  one, 
won  the  special  for  best  voice  on  two  occasions ;  and 
Don,  another  big  one,  won  it  once.  In  conclusion 
I  will  say  that  I  fii'mly  believe  that  I  am  breeding 
the  proper  way  to  produce  good  worldng  beagles 
of  the  proper  type,  that  can  make  a  good  record 
on  the  show  bench  and  in  the  field,  and  when  I  am 
beaten  by  any  of  the  men  that  are  trying  to  run 
down  my  dogs  I  will  acknowledge  it,  but  not  be- 
fore. In  the  above  challenge  I  will  back  my  dogs 
for  any  reasonable  amount,  to  be  agreed  upon 
later." 

Then  Mr.  George  F.  Reed  gets  back  at  Mr. 
Lewis  in  two  sporting  papers  with  the  following 
pithy  letter;  "In  your  issue  of  July  11th,  I  read 
Mr.  Joseph  Lewis'  piece  in  regard  to  bone  in 
beagles.  Now  I  will  say  to  Mr.  Lewis  that  in  the 
articles  written  by  myself  and  others  I  do  not  think 
his  kennel  was  mentioned,  but  as  he  has  brought 


150  Forty  Years  Beagling 

up  my  name,  with  your  permission,  I  will  take  up 
some  of  your  valuable  space  in  answering  a  few 
things  Mr.  Lewis  calls  facts,  that  are  not  facts  by 
any  means.  For  no  one  has  claimed  that  the  light- 
boned,  weedy  type  has  been  the  winner  at  our  late 
beagle  trials.  As  to  the  'fact'  of  such  hounds  as 
Lee  2nd,  Jean  Yal  Jean,  Baronet,  Spark  R.  and 
Buckshot  being  as  heavy-boned  or  heavier  than 
Ringleader,  I  say  decidedly  'no.'  I  own  Spark  and 
Buckshot,  and  know  what  I  am  talking  about,  and 
I  will  ask  the  owners  of  Lee  2nd,  Jean  Val  Jean, 
Baronet  and  other  beagles  mentioned  by  Mr.  Lewis 
to  let  us  hear  from  them  in  regard  to  this  fact. 

"Now,  Mr.  Editor,  I  do  not  believe  in  these  paper 
fights,  but  I  am  not  used  to  taking  any  bluff,  and  as 
Mr.  Lewis  throws  out  a  little  challenge,  I  will 
accept  it  and  be  glad  to  do  so;  and  I  will  meet  his 
dogs  at  the  New  York  and  Boston  shows.  As  none 
of  Harker's  puppies  are  over  two  months  old  today 
I  can  not  show  them  at  Providence.  In  exchange 
I  will  make  Mr.  Lewis  a  challenge  and  put  up  a 
forfeit,  and  I  hope  he  will  accept  one  and  all  of 
the  following  propositions — I  will  run  Harker 
against  Ringleader  for  $50.00  a  side;  Nell  R. 
against  Lonely  for  the  same;  Harker  and  Nell  R. 
as  a  brace  against  Ringleader  and  Lonely  for  the 
same;  to  run  at  the  National  Beagle  Club's  trials 


Bone  in  the  Beagle  151 


to  be  held  next  fall,  and  under  the  judges  elected 
for  those  trials.  Also,  I  will  run  them  under  the 
score-card  system  for  both  show  and  field  qualities, 
as  proposed  by  Mr.  Kreuder  at  the  late  New  York 
show.  And  I  will  run  at  the  National  Beagle  trials 
a  puppy  sired  by  Harker,  against  one  sired  by 
Ringleader;  also  a  brace  of  puppies  sired  by  the 
above  mentioned  dogs;  for  $25.00  a  side  each  trial, 
under  the  judges  selected  by  the  National  Beagle 
Club  for  1897.  We  are  both  members  of  this  club, 
so  I  hope  these  terms  will  be  satisfactory  to  Mr. 
Lewis,  and  that  I  shall  have  the  pleasure  of  his 
acceptance  of  my  challenge  as  I  accept  his. 

"As  to  another  'fact,'  Mr.  Lewis  says  my  kennel 
did  a  lot  of  poor  work,  as  the  record  shows,  and  asks 
what  kind  of  showing  they  made  against  Baronet, 
Triumph  and  Lady  Novice.  Where  did  he  buy  the 
paper,  in  which  he  read,  my  kennel  did  a  lot  of  poor 
work?  Here  are  the  facts,  and  I  refer  you  to  the 
judges:  Spark  B.  was  second  to  Baronet  (first) 
for  special ;  Nell  R.  was  third  in  open  class  to  Tri- 
umph (first)  ;  Spot  R.  was  second  to  Lady  Novice 
(first).  A  fair  record,  not  poor.  And  when  his 
beagles  have  won  as  many  first,  second  and  third 
prizes,  also  two  champion  stakes,  as  mine  have,  I 
think  his  'crow'  will  be  heard  from  North  to  South, 
and  East  to  West. 


152  Forty  Years  Beagling 

"As  to  being  jealous  of  any  one's  wins  over  mine 
in  the  past  year,  I  will  say  I  have  not  got  any  of 
that  blood  in  my  veins.  When  I  am  beaten  in  the 
field  or  at  shows  I  always  am  one  of  the  first  to 
holloa  for  the  other  fellow's  dog,  and  do  not  throw 
my  arms  over  the  fence  and  sulk  and  abuse  the 
judge  because  he  did  not  place  my  dog  first.  At 
New  York  I  won  first  with  Harker,  and  second 
with  Nell  R.;  at  Boston  first  with  Harker,  first 
with  Nell  R.,  and  third  with  Mag  R.,  in  open 
classes,  and  first  with  Kate  R.  in  puppy  class.  No 
need  of  my  being  jealous. 

"In  regard  to  voice,  Mr.  Lewis  says  he  thinks  it 
ought  to  be  known  that  a  large,  strong  dog  would 
have  a  better  voice  than  a  light,  weedy  one.  Well, 
we  are  not  talking  about  weedy  ones.  But  why,  be- 
cause a  dog  is  a  great,  coarse  dog  should  he  have  the 
best  hound  voice?  Also,  why  at  some  church  the 
base  or  tenor  singer  weighs  two  hundred  pounds, 
and  stands  six  feet,  while  at  the  church  on  the  next 
street  the  base  or  tenor  singer  weighs  one  hundred 
and  twenty-five  pounds,  and  stands  five  feet  six 
inches?  I*^^^ 

"I  do  not  pose  as  an  authority  on  mongrel  hunt- 
ing rabbits,  and  I  do  not  believe  there  ever  was  a 
mongrel  that  can  beat  our  first-class  beagle  trial 
dogs.    If  I  thought  so  I  would  go  out  of  the  busi- 


Bone  in  the  Beagle  153 

ness  and  go  to  raising  mongrels,  for  three-fifths  of 
the  people  want  good  hunters.  If  the  hunting  in- 
stinct in  the  beagle  is  to  be  kept  up  it  cannot  be 
done  by  breeding  to  a  dog  simply  because  he  has 
been  shoved  around  from  show  to  show,  for  the 
reason  you  can  lose  more  hunting  instinct  by  breed- 
ing to  such  a  dog  than  you  can  get  back  in  a  life 
time.  I  am  not  referring  to  Mr.  Lewis'  kennel. 
One  cannot  get  any  too  good  hunters  by  breeding 
to  the  best  field  dog  living,  and  by  hunting  the 
bitches  when  in  whelp.  I  shall  be  pleased  to  read 
articles  from  Messrs.  Dorsey,  Wixom,  Kreuder  and 
other  prominent  breeders  telling  us  how  to  get 
good  hound  voices  and  workers  in  the  field  for  a 
season  of  hard  work." 

And  Mr.  E.  C.  Cook  closes  the  argument  with: 
"Why  don't  all  lovers  of  the  beagle  use  him  for 
what  he  was  bred— the  field,  to  hunt?  In  reading 
your  issue  of  the  11th  [American  Stock-Keeper] 
I  see  a  breeder  of  beagles  would  like  to  show  his 
beagles  on  the  bench  and  see  what  bone  will  do. 
Now  I  would  like  to  know  what  a  beagle  does  on 
the  bench  that  requires  bone? 

"If  the  writer  will  say  that  he  will  run  his  dogs 
against  all  comers  for  one  day  to  three  or  six,  he 
will  find  lots  of  men  with  small-boned  dogs  ready 
and  anxious  to  make  him  look  lonely." 


CHAPTER  X 

TOY   BEAGLES 

AN  interesting  argument  on  toy  beagles  is 
started  in  the  fall  of  1896  by  Mr.  J.  Otis 
Fellows  of  Hornellsville,  New  York,  when 
he  says  "I  wish  to  remark,  as  I  have  often  done  be- 
fore, that  an  excess  of  bone  in  beagles,  or  any 
other  dog,  is  rot,  that  is,  bone  out  of  proportion  to 
the  dog.  If  you  must  have  big  hounds  to  hunt  little 
rabbits  with,  call  them  by  the  right  name,  harriers 
or  foxhounds,  and  don't  use  a  big  16-inch  dog,  which 
weighs  35  pounds  or  more,  and  call  it  a  beagle.  I 
know  a  lot  of  dogs  that  win  under  certain  judges 
which,  if  allowed  to  stand  natural  are  from  16  to 
17  inches  at  shoulder,  and  they  get  there  under  the 
standard  by  holding  their  muzzles  on  to  the  floor. 
Beagle  used  to  mean  small,  now  it  means  that  the 
larger  you  get  them  the  more  you  can  win. 

"  'Nibs'  is  the  dog  you  refer  to,  and  I  will  give 
$10.00  to  any  beagle  in  America  that  can  get  10 
rods  ahead  of  her  in  five  hours  running,  and  I  think 
she  is  under  10  inches.  She  can  run  just  as  long  as 
any  of  the  imported  foxhounds,  and  run  a  hare  just 

154 


Toy  Beagles  155 


as  stiff  as  anything  in  Maryland.  I  know  three 
little  beagles,  9,  91/2  and  101/2  inch  that  are  just  the 
very  best  hounds  for  foxes  in  that  section,  they  do 
not  catch  foxes  as  they  would  have  us  believe  all 
the  Southern  hounds  do,  but  all  the  same  their 
owner  shot  43  red  foxes  ahead  of  them  last  season. 

"What's  the  use  of  any  talk  about  reviving 
pocket  beagles,  when  Wixom  can  sell  you  any 
quantity  of  them  under  10  inches,  but  it  is  no  use 
to  show  them.  They  think  they  are  only  toys,  but 
you  know  better,  as  you  have  seen  them  at  work. 

"What  has  'thick  rocky  cover'  got  to  do  with  it, 
and  how  can  it  be  'too  much  for  their  strength'  ?  A 
9-inch  beagle  can  go  where  bunny  can,  and  I  know 
he  is  much  stronger." 

Next  comes  Mr.  H.  B.  Tallman,  of  Green, 
Rhode  Island,  in  favor  of  the  larger  beagle,  when 
he  says :  "Mr.  Fellows  writes  as  though  he  believed 
that  toy  beagles  were  as  fast  and  enduring  workers 
as  the  large  ones,  and  says  that  the  talk  about  rough, 
rocky  country  is  all  nonsense.  I  don't  see  why  their 
size — or  lack  of  size — should  prevent  their  being 
fast  or  enduring,  in  a  country  that  is  favorable  to 
the  work  of  small  dogs,  but  does  he  really  think  that 
dogs  under  12  inches  can  follow  rabbits  thi'oughout 
a  day's  hunt  in  a  country  composed  principally  of 
thick  swamp,  brush  heaps,  blackberry  vines,  and 


156  Forty  Years  Beagling 

rock}%  bushy  pastures,  and  keep  them  going  pretty 
surely  and  steadily  at  as  good  a  rate  of  speed  as 
dogs  from  13  to  15  inches? 

"Mr.  Fellows  has  probably  had  more  experience 
with  small  beagles  than  I  have,  still,  I  have  had 
some  and  my  experience  has  given  me  a  contrary 
opinion.  He  says  they  can  go  anywhere  bunny 
can,  but  I  don't  think  that  is  necessary,  and  a  fast 
driving  good  dog  is  not  apt  to  attempt  to  do  it,  ex- 
cept at  times  when  he  misses  the  track,  when  he  can 
go  through  a  brush  heap  or  clump  of  thick  bushes  in 
a  way  which  would  be  impossible  to  a  little  dog. 
Besides  hunting  with  a  little  dog,  because  he  can  go 
'anywhere  that  bunny  can'  would  be  too  much  like 
using  a  ferret  which  some  of  us  consider  unsports- 
manlike. Beagles  have  been  bred  up  to  15  inches 
in  height  for  several  years,  but  if  Mr.  Fellows  ob- 
jects to  such  huge  dogs  being  called  a  beagle — 
'which  means  small' — we  can  call  them  something 
else  without  any  detriment  to  any  of  their  good 
qualities,  and  if  the  little  dogs  cannot  get  justice 
done  them  in  the  show  ring,  why  not  have  a  class 
for  toy  beagles  and  have  them  judged  by  a  toy  man, 
with  a  score  card? 

Mr.  E.  O.  Cornforth  then  adds  his  say  to  the  ar- 
gument, for  he  was  evidently  an  owner  and  breeder 
of  them  if  we  judge  his  letter  which  follows  in  the 


Toy  Beagles  157 


American  Stock  Keeper,  "In  all  my  experience 
with  beagles  of  12  inches  and  under,  I  have  found 
them  to  be  superior  in  the  field,  as  a  rule,  than  the 
14  and  15  inch  dogs.  I  have  owned  several  11  inch 
bitches  that  would  work  with,  and  do  their  part  in 
a  pack  with  14  and  15  inch  beagles,  and  start  more 
rabbits  than  the  larger  ones.  They  can  go  under 
brush  and  briars  where  bunny  hides,  and  where  the 
larger  dogs  cannot  work,  and  they  will  endure  as 
much,  and  drive  as  long  as  the  larger  ones. 

"Take  a  pack  of  under  12  inch  beagles,  and  they 
will  drive  slower  and  the  quarry  will  stay  on  top  of 
the  ground  longer,  and  not  rush  for  a  hole  or  stone 
wall  as  they  will  do  with  a  pack  of  14  and  15  inch 
beagles.  Many  people  think  that  beagles  12  inches 
and  under  are  of  no  use  in  the  field.  This  is  not  so, 
as  many  can  testify.  I  think  we  are  breeding 
beagles  too  large.  Some  have  proposed  raising  the 
standard  to  16  inches;  better  put  it  down  to  14 
inches  instead.  I  should  like  to  see  a  class  in  the 
field  trials  as  well  as  on  the  bench  for  11  inches  and 
under.  Until  there  is  such  a  class  no  notice  will  be 
taken  of  them  in  the  show  ring.  A  13  inch  beagle, 
bred  right,  is  large  enough  to  hunt  anything  that  a 
beagle  is  supposed  to  hunt." 

Then  follows  a  story  of  a  hunt  hy  that  veteran 
and  patriarch  of  the  game,  Frank  A.  Bond  of  Jes- 


158  Forty  Years  Beagling 

sups,  Maryland,  which  would  seem  to  prove  that 
the  small  beagle  was  a  hunting  hound. 

In  what  follows  regarding  the  series  of  chases 
one  will  notice  that  Mr.  Bond  alludes  to  the  rabbit 
as  a  hare,  though  it  would  seem  that  it  must  have 
been  the  cotton-tail  which  was  the  object  of  the 
chase.  In  part  Mr.  Bond  says:  "I  have  been  told 
there  are  many  owners  of  beagles  and  old  rabbit- 
hunters  that  do  not  believe  a  pack  of  medium-sized 
beagles  can,  as  a  rule,  run  down  and  kill  a  full 
grown  rabbit.  They  will  admit  that  once  in  a  good 
while,  with  luck,  one  may  be  caught,  but  twice  in  a 
while  never!  If  any  such  unbelievers  could  have 
been  with  me  last  Thursday  and  Friday  they  would 
have  been  forever  convinced  of  their  error. 

"I  paid  a  visit  to  my  old  Confederate  friend  and 
comrade.  Judge  David  Griffith,  of  Montgomery 
County,  and  in  company  with  his  son,  and  their 
neighbor,  Mr.  Bradley  Macgi'uder,  hunted  four 
or  five  hours  a  day  for  a  couple  of  days.  We  had 
fifteen  beagles,  several  belonging  to  each  of  us,  and 
by  no  means  carefully  selected  as  a  killing  pack, 
as  three  of  them  were  puppies  under  eight  months 
old,  and  old  Rose  will  be  fifteen  years  this  Febru- 
ary. The  fastest  pair  we  had  out  were  Flight  and 
Flirt,  and  both  of  these  are  under  twelve  inches  in 
height,  as  indeed,  were  quite  one  half  of  the  pack. 


Toy  Beagles  159 


With  two  exceptions  all  these  hounds  were  under 
two  years  and  this  was  their  first  season's  hunting. 
These  rabbits  were  found  and  killed  in  heavy  tim- 
bered land,  where  a  hurricane  in  September,  1895, 
had  blown  over  and  broken  off  nearly  one  third  of 
the  largest  trees,  at  that  time  in  full  foliage  and 
still  retaining  their  dead  leaves.  This  w^ould  appear 
to  form  a  cover  and  protection  that  would  make  it 
impossible  that  rabbits  should  be  killed  by  beagles, 
and  yet  wx  did  kill  ten  consecutively,  with  never 
one  lost,  and  without  so  much  as  a  stone  being 
throw^n  to  help  the  hounds. 

"January  hares  are  very  strong  runners  and  very 
smart,  and  they  tried  every  trick  and  wile  known  to 
the  species,  but  it  was  no  use,  the  unerring  nose  of 
these  little  Maryland  beagles,  coupled  with  their 
pluck  and  staying  qualities,  would  invariably  wear 
out  'Br'er  Rabbit'  and  he  would  be  compelled  to 
surrender.  There  is  a  possible  chance  one  fellow 
would  have  saved  his  bacon  had  I  not  seen  him.  He 
ran  aromid  the  outer  edges  of  this  wood  some  dis- 
tance, then  at  a  right  angle  through  a  rail  fence 
several  hundi-ed  yards  in  the  fallen  timber  and  hid. 
When  the  pack  had  all  passed  beyond  him,  he 
tipped  back  to  the  fence  and  jumped  upon  a  broad 
rail  and  laid  flat.  In  a  few  minutes  the  hounds 
came  back  and  looked  everywhere  for  him,  but  as 


160  Forty  Years  Beagling 

he  was  above  the  ground,  it  is  very  possible  they 
would  not  have  found  him,  but  it  so  happened  that 
I  was  sitting  on  the  fence  quite  near  and  had  been 
a  witness  of  the  whole  maneuvre.  I  am  not  quite 
sure  it  was  quite  fair  in  me,  and,  moreover,  I  am 
not  sure  this  rabbit  had  any  right  to  go  climbing 
fences — it  not  being  considered  a  part  of  the  game 
— but  be  that  as  it  may,  I  didn't  do  a  thing  but  go 
there  and  make  him  get  down,  and  in  a  very  few 
minutes  he  was  fairly  killed." 


CHAPTER  XI 


AVEIGHT  IN  BEAGLES 


ANOTHER  subject  that  is  dwelt  upon  about 
this  time,  late  in  1896  and  in  the  early  part 
of  1897  is  the  amount  that  a  beagle  should 
weigh,  and  if  the  opinions  of  some  of  the  experts  of 
those  days  publicly  printed  are  any  criterion,  there 
was  a  difference  of  opinion  on  this  subject  also. 

Mr.  Edmund  Orgill,  of  "The  Cedars,"  Bond, 
Tennessee,  opens  the  argument  in  Turf,  Field  and 
Farm  in  reply  to  an  inquiry  by  the  editor,  who  said : 
"Some  beagle  fanciers  who  own  large  and  coarse 
specimens  avow  that  dogs  whose  weight  is  in  the 
neighborhood  of  20  pounds  are  useless  for  working 
purposes,  while  others  who  own  the  smaller  sort  are 
just  as  emphatic  in  their  opinion  that  the  owners 
of  the  big  ones  do  not  know  what  they  are  talking 
about.  Then  there  are  the  breeders  of  big  Cocker 
Spaniels,  ever  ready  to  condemn  the  little  dogs 
which  are  much  more  difficult  to  breed  than  the 
heavy  and  coarse,  or  the  leggy  and  weedy  big  ones. 
If  beagles  weighing  20  to  23  pounds  can  do  good 
strong  work,  the  senseless  condemnation  of  the  20 

161 


162  Forty  Years  Beagling 

to  23  pound  cockers  as  parlor  dogs'  is  buried  for 
all  time  and  only  the  owners  of  the  'wrong  'uns' 
will  regret  its  timely  disappearance.  With  a  view 
to  having  for  publication  the  opinions  of  beagle 
fanciers  on  this  question  of  weight  we  sent  out  a 
number  of  letters,  and  the  answers  received,  which 
we  give  this  week,  certainly  do  not  bear  out  the 
opinions  of  the  advocates  of  the  heavy  sort.  We 
ask  especial  attention  to  the  opinion  of  Mr.  Ed- 
mund Orgill,  probably  the  oldest  and  most  experi- 
enced breeder  in  the  country,  and  a  gentleman 
whose  opinion  on  either  pointers  or  beagles  is 
eagerly  sought  after.  Mr.  Orgill  has  always  owned 
one  of  the  most  level  packs,  and  his  dogs  have  for 
many  years  been  celebrated  for  their  splendid  work- 
ing qualities." 

Mr.  Orgill's  letter  follows :  "The  smallest  beagle 
I  ever  owned  was  about  10  inches;  he  was  the  runt 
of  a  litter,  and  being  out  of  a  favorite  bitch  I  kept 
him.  He  worked  well  and  kept  up  with  the  pack, 
and  their  size  was  about  13  inches,  and  weight  from 
14  to  16  pounds.  Tliis  was  my  favorite  size.  My 
idea  of  a  nice  pack  is  uniformity.  I  hunted  from 
five  to  seven  couples,  never  carried  a  gun,  but  usu- 
ally killed  from  two  to  seven  every  day  I  hunted, 
and  that  was  within  two  to  four  and  a  half  hours. 
The  beagle  men  in  the  North  have  told  me  that  they 


Weight  in  Beagles  163 

never  would  kill  the  rabbits  unless  they  had  a  gun. 
Here  our  fields  are  large  and  we  have  no  swamps, 
consequently,  if  we  have  a  good  scent  we  generally 
kill,  unless  cotton-tail  when  closely  pressed  takes 
shelter  in  some  hollow  log  or  tree." 

And  here  is  Mr.  George  W.  Rogers'  statement 
from  New  York:  "What  constitutes  the  best 
working  beagle  in  the  field  as  to  size  and  weight, 
I  beheve,  and  it  has  been  my  experience  in  handling 
this  breed  of  hounds  that  the  best  beagle  is  about  13 
inches  in  height,  weighing  about  15  pounds,  rather 
cobby  in  form,  with  good  strong  limbs.  At  all  the 
field  trials  I  have  attended,  the  beagle  of  this  de- 
scription has  invariably  been  the  winner.  Of  the 
smaller  sized  beagle,  I  can  say  that  one  of  the  best 
working  beagles  in  the  field  was  Nibs,  owned  by 
Mr.  C.  S.  Wixom.  This  little  fellow  stood  about  9 
inches  high  and  weighed  about  11  pounds.  He  was 
the  most  enthusiastic  worker  I  ever  saw.  I  have 
seen  him  hunt  with  a  pack,  all  much  larger  in  size ; 
he  was  the  truest  in  holding  the  scent,  always  pick- 
ing up  the  trail  when  the  other  larger  dogs  were  at 
a  loss.  When  the  quarry  was  driven  to  earth.  Nibs 
would  follow,  and  in  consequence  would  have  to  be 
dug  out. 

Next  comes  Mr.  H.  L.  Kreuder,  of  Nanuet,  New 
York,  stating  that  in  his  opinion  "for  a  prevailing 


164  Forty  Years  Beagling 

average  of  14  inches  a  beagle  should  not  exceed  15 
or  16  pounds  in  weight.  The  same  dog  would 
weigh  20  pounds  in  ordinary  show  condition.  I 
have  small  ones  between  10  and  12  inches,  weight 
from  8  to  10  pounds,  and  they  run  with  a  small  or 
slow  pack  for  half  a  day,  but  such  as  these  cannot 
run  all  day  or  keep  in  with  an  average  14  inch  pack 
that  range  well,  bark  quick  and  close,  and  drive  to 
a  strong  finish.  Most  of  these  small  beagles  when 
used  in  a  pack  are  depended  upon  to  make  the  starts 
from  close  covers,  but  cannot  keep  the  pace  after 
the  driving  has  begun." 

Then  Mr.  C.  O.  Smith  of  Woonsocket,  Rhode 
Island,  has  his  say  in  the  matter  when  he  shoots  the 
weight  up  from  18  to  22  pounds  as  being  the  best 
for  work  in  the  field.  He  goes  on  to  say  that  he 
has  some  14-inch  beagles,  none  over  13^/^  inches 
high  and  not  over  22  pounds,  and  they  can  hunt  on 
the  roughest  of  ground  all  day.  "I  killed  22  rabbits 
with  a  pair  of  my  beagles  in  eight  hours — Drum- 
mer Boy,  weight  22  pounds,  and  Woonsocket  Girl, 
weight  17  pounds.  I  would  be  pleased  to  show  any 
of  my  dogs  in  the  field  at  any  time  on  gray  rabbits 
or  white  hares,  and  the  latch  string  hangs  out  at  my 
house,  for  any  one  that  likes  the  little  beagle." 

And  Mr.  E.  E.  Truitt  of  New  Bethlehem,  Penn- 
sylvania, adds  another  couple  of  pounds,  when  he 


Weight  in  Beagles  165 

remarks  that  "In  my  opinion  the  most  desirable 
weight  for  a  working  beagle  is  24  pounds,  when  in 
good  working  condition.  I  also  have  a  little  12 
pound  beagle  that  will  stay  in  the  field  as  long  as 
the  larger  ones  and  do  fairly  good  work,  but  in 
our  rough,  hilly  country,  where  game  is  scarce,  he 
does  not  cover  ground  fast  enough." 

And  Mr.  George  F.  Reed  of  Barton,  Vermont, 
says:  "I  prefer  a  beagle  from  14  to  l^^/o  inches  in 
height  that  will  weigh  from  21  to  24  pounds.  This 
I  wish  to  be  understood  is  in  working  condition. 
As  regards  the  light  weights,  the  smallest  beagle 
I  ever  owned  that  was  A  No.  1  in  the  field  for  all 
day  and  for  a  full  season  of  hard  work  was  my  little 
bitch  Ch.  Spot  R.,  winning  her  title  at  National 
Beagle  Club  field  trials  in  1895.  She  stood  12^4 
inches  and  weighed  14  pounds." 

Here  is  what  Mr.  George  Laick  of  Tarrytown, 
New  York,  has  to  say  on  the  subject:  "I  consider 
the  most  desirable  weight  for  a  working  beagle  (14 
to  15  inches  in  height)  to  be  from  21  to  25  pounds 
when  in  good  flesh.  Beagles  under  13  inches  are 
good  workers  on  bare  ground  and  I  have  owned 
some  good  ones.  The  smallest  one  that  I  ever 
owned  was  a  little  bitch  weighing  about  12  pounds. 
She  was  Imported  Laick's  Rattler  and  she  could 
do  good  work  every  day  in  the  week,  but  such 


166  Forty  Years  Beagling 

beagles    as    her    size    are    scarce    for    every-day 
workers." 

And  Mr.  F.  B.  Zimmer  of  Gloversville,  New 
York,  considers  a  beagle  of  from  18  to  25  pounds 
of  about  correct  weight,  or,  perhaps  I  should  have 
said  those  of  that  size  or  weight  have  always  proved 
themselves  the  best  for  the  work  I  ask  of  them, 
which  is  hunting  our  Northern  hare  (Lepus  Amer- 
icanus)  and  which  requires  a  strong  little  hound, 
and  one  with  endurance  to  successfully  hunt  him, 
for,  as  you  well  know,  he  never  will  take  to  earth  and 
often  a  wily  old  buck  is  started  and  must  be  driven 
for  hours  before  he  is  shot.  I  presume,  brother 
sportsmen,  who  hunt  only  the  gray  or  ground  rab- 
bit, can  find  smaller  and  lighter  beagles  that  can  do 
their  work  satisfactorily.  The  smallest  or  lightest 
beagle  I  ever  owned  or  saw  that  could  stand  any 
kind  of  hunting  all  day  and  six  days  in  the  week, 
days  that  often  last  until  after  nightfall,  was  12 
inches  at  shoulder  and  weighed  in  working  condi- 
tion 18  pounds." 

And  Mr.  H.  B.  Tallman  of  Cranston,  Rhode 
Island,  says  that  he  never  paid  much  attention  to 
the  weight  of  beagles,  having  gone  altogether  by 
height  measm-ement,  and  proportions  and  symme- 
try. However  he  further  says  "A  13  inch  dog  can 
do  as  much  work,  and  do  it  as  fast,  and  last  as  long 


Weight  in  Beagles  167 

as  a  15  inch  dog,  if  he  is  built  right ;  and  for  my  own 
fancy  I  Hke  them  best  from  13  to  14  inches.  Dogs 
mider  13  inches  that  I  would  call  well  made  for 
workers,  are  scarce,  and  when  I  have  found  them  I 
have  also  found  that  if  they  were  willing,  they  were 
able  to  do  more  work  and  do  it  easier  than  the  others 
in  their  class,  though  w^hen  run  with  larger  dogs 
they  were  generally  at  a  disadvantage. 

"Blossom,  the  winner  of  13  inch  all  age  class,  and 
Ida,  novice,  winner  of  13  inch  derby,  should  be 
bench  show  winners,  and  both  did  hard  work  in 
hunting  and  driving  at  Oxford,  but  they  are  not 
big  enough  to  hold  their  own  with  winners  in  the 
15  inch  classes.  They  are  as  good  little  ones  as  I 
know  of,  but  I  don't  know  any  more  about  their  size 
than  that  they  were  in  the  small  class,  but  a  guess 
would  place  them  at  about  12  inches.  Mr.  Fiske 
would  give  you  their  exact  measurements  and 
weights." 

Mr.  F.  W.  Chapman  of  Ellsworth,  Maine,  refers 
to  the  hundreds  of  beagles  he  has  owned  and  hunted 
and  striking  an  average,  says  he  should  say  that  "in 
a  well-proportioned  dog  of  13  or  14  inches  of  height, 
22  to  27  pounds  would  be  about  right.  I  have  a  list 
of  some  dozens  of  my  best  workers  for  some  six  or 
seven  years  back,  in  which  I  have  kept  measurement 
of  height,  chest,  weight,  ears,  etc.,  and  have  arrived 


168  Forty  Years  Beagling 

at  the  above  conclusion  from  a  careful  analysis  of 
that.  As  to  what  is  the  lowest  weight  in  a  dog  capa- 
ble of  doing  good  work  and  lots  of  it,  will  say  12 
pounds  in  weight,  11  inches  in  height.  I  had  one 
that  weighed  9^  pounds  and  stood  10^2  inches, 
but  did  not  consider  him  good  for  over  half  a  day  of 
hard  driving  in  rough  cover,  although  he  would  run 
all  day  by  himself  at  a  fair  gate.  The  11  inch,  12 
pound  dog  could  and  can  follow  any  13  inch  dog  I 
ever  saw  in  any  cover  and  will  get  over  a  wall  by 
climbing  sooner  than  a  15  inch  one.  Mr.  George 
Reed  had,  or  has,  a  little  bitch  in  Spotty,  or  Spot 
R.,  that  is  as  good  a  worker  and  as  hard  a  worker 
as  any  15  inch  dog  I  ever  saw,  and  there  are  others." 

Mr.  W.  S.  Clark  of  Linden,  Massachusetts, 
stated  that  the  best  beagles  he  had  ever  seen  run 
and  keep  it  up  all  day,  weighed  from  17  to  20 
pounds.  He  had  seen  a  very  few  little  ones  that 
weighed  from  10  to  12  pounds  that  were  good  all 
day  workers,  but  they  were  very  scarce.  He  said 
that  the  best  little  one  that  he  ever  saw  was  Spot  R., 
and  that  Royal  Kreuger  was  as  pretty  a  worker 
as  he  ever  saw,  for  a  short  time,  as  he  could  not 
stay. 

These  letters  naturally  brought  out  some  critic- 
ism and  Mr.  C.  S.  Wixom  was  the  first  to  take  any 
exception,  claiming  that  Mr.  Clark  in  his  letter  was 


Weight  in  Beagles  169 

hurting  the  reputation  of  Royal  Kreuger  by  his 
statement  that  this  hound  could  not  stay.  Mr. 
Wixom  states  that  Royal  Ki-euger  has  hunted  with 
his  pack  for  five  years  and  never  showed  the  symp- 
tons  alluded  to,  nor  was  he  gunshy  as  gossip  had  it. 
Mr.  Clark  was  one  of  the  judges  at  the  National 
Beagle  Club  trials  held  at  Nanuet,  New  York,  in 
1891  and  had  seen  this  hound  run  under  him  as 
judge.  In  closing  Mr.  Wixom  states,  "It  was  the 
treatment  that  my  dogs  received  at  the  '91  trials 
from  this  man  Clark  that  entirely  disgusted  me  with 
field  trials  and  I  have  never  entered  at  any  trials 
since.  I  could  say  much  more  regarding  these  same 
trials,  but  I  have  already  taken  too  much  of  your 
valuable  space.  However,  I  could  not  let  the  ab- 
solutely false  statement  pass  without  saying  a  few 
words  regarding  the  matter." 

Then  along  comes  "Canada  Gray"  with  some 
caustic  remarks  about  some  men's  knowledge  of  the 
beagle  in  the  following  words.  "The  gi^eat  trouble 
with  some  of  the  beagle  breeders  is  that  they  do  not 
know  what  working  condition  is.  For  myself  I 
never  saw  a  good  little  dog  beat  a  good  big  dog. 
The  Turf,  Field  and  Farm  brought  up  a  good  sub- 
ject and  much  could  be  written  on  it.  I  have  al- 
ways been  in  favor  of  the  14  or  14%  inch  beagle, 
for  my  hunting  is  the  northern  hare,  but  the  dog  I 


170  Forty  Years  Beagling 

will  send  to  the  trials  must  weigh  from  one  to  two 
pounds  less  than  when  conditioned  for  a  season's 
hunting.  Field  trial  heats  are  short  and  speed  and 
nose  are  two  necessary  requisites.  A  fast  dog  is 
nearly  always  a  good  starter." 

Who  was  the  owner  of  the  first  beagle  in  Mary- 
land? We  find  it  in  a  letter  from  Mr.  C.  Staley 
Doub  of  Frederick,  Maryland,  to  Mr.  George  R. 
Reed,  stating  the  fact  that  Senator  George  R. 
Peters  of  Rockville  was  the  man.  Mr.  Doub  fur- 
ther states  that  Lucy  V.,  the  dam  of  Dorsey's  Diana 
bred  by  the  Senator,  was  the  beagle  of  her  day  in 
Maryland  and  that  she  was  a  14  inch  beagle  weigh- 
ing 21  pounds.  Mr.  Doub  goes  on  further  and  says 
that  to  Captain  Assheton  we  owe  the  original  intro- 
duction of  the  blue-ticked  stock.  Any  one  who 
breeds  beagles  must  have  noticed  that  the  color  is 
generally  accompanied  by  over-size  and  lack  of  ear- 
age.  My  theory  is  that  the  blue  ticking  comes  from 
the  old  blue  spotted  harrier  or  our  native  small- 
eared  foxhound,  and  that  when  puppies  inherit  the 
color  they  also  inherit  the  size  and  short  ears  of  this 
line  of  their  ancestors.  I  want  to  breed  to  dogs  that 
are  broken  and  have  led  their  packs  in  the  field  and 
that  have  dams  and  grand  dams  that  are  fielders. 
Regarding  size,  I  want  a  dog  from  14  to  I4I/2 
inches,  for  in  my  experience  I  never  saw  a  good 


Weight  in  Beagles  171 


little  dog  beat  a  good  big  one.     Regarding  shape, 
I  want  a  dog  built  on  racy  lines,  not  cobby." 

Then  a  bit  further  along  in  Turf,  Field  and 
Farm  we  find  the  sequel  of  Mr.  Wixom's  statement 
that  his  hound.  Royal  Kreuger,  was  not  a  quitter. 
Mr.  Clark  made  inquiry  from  several  gentlemen 
who  saw  the  two  heats  between  Clyde  and  the 
Wixom  hound,  and  it  develops  upon  inquiry  from 
the  handler  of  Clyde,  Mr.  A.  Parry,  and  from  Mr. 
W.  H.  Ashburner  that  Royal  Kreuger  had  quit 
in  the  second  heat,  sat  on  a  stone  wall  and  watched 
Clyde  drive. 

And  now  we  find  in  a  private  letter  (the  name  of 
the  author  not  being  allowed  to  be  reproduced) 
which  says:  "A  dog  of  courage  will  run  better  on 
three  legs  than  a  coward  with  five  legs,  whether 
heavy  or  light  boned." 


CHAPTER  XII 

FIELD  TRIAL  BEAGLE  TYPE 

ALONG  in  1898  we  find  Mr.  Hiram  Card,  of 
Elora,  Ontario,  Canada,  coming  into  the 
limelight,  regarding  the  Rowett  hounds; 
Bannerman,  and  the  effect  of  the  latter  on  the  breed 
as  a  sire.  He  starts  with  a  letter  written  to  Mr. 
J.  M.  Pulley,  which  is  taken  up  by  Mr.  James 
MacAleer  and  several  others,  the  latter  being  the 
originator  of  the  celebrated  Tippecanoe  strain  of 
to-day,  which  was  started  from  the  "Dan"  Sum- 
mers hounds  which  Mr.  MacAleer  bought.  "In 
regard  to  Blue  Jacket's  coarse  head  and  long  body, 
they  might  have  come  from  his  sire  Bannerman, 
who  was  very  hberally  provided  in  these  respects. 
Jack  B.  probably  inherited  them  from  his  dam, 
Kate,  who  was  an  inbred  Victor.  I  never  saw  old 
Victor,  but  his  stock,  as  far  as  I  know  them,  are 
of  the  long  coarse  type.  The  Blue  Caps  are  also 
fixed,  a  little  fixed,  a  little  the  same  way,  but  to  a 
less  degree.  Both  strains  are  hunters,  first,  last, 
and  all  the  time.    The  Victor  has  the  most  dash  and 

172 


Field  Trial  Beagle  Type  173 

speed,  but  for  ability  to,  as  you  put  it,  'hark  for- 
ward,' I  have  never  seen  anything  to  equal  the 
Blue  Caps.  Both  strains  came  from  Ashbui'nam. 
Captain  Assheton,  who  imported  them,  lived  in 
Canada,  some  35  to  40  years  ago;  but  at  that  time 
kept  foxhounds.  He  imported  the  beagles  after  re- 
moving to  Virginia. 

"There  were  no  bench  shows  in  those  days.  The 
first  show  beagles  in  this  country  were  the  Rowetts, 
and  for  character  and  quality  I  have  never  seen 
anything  since  to  equal  them.  They  were  field  dogs 
as  well — true,  sweet  voiced,  and  dead  game.  But 
the  craze  for  them  caused  too  much  inter-breeding, 
and  the  so-called  Rowetts  of  to-day  are  mostly  in- 
ferior stuff.  The  American  B.  C.  standard  was 
built  to  fit  the  Bowett  type,  and  if  it  had  been  ad- 
hered to,  we  would  have  a  better  class  of  hunting 
beagles  now ;  but  on  the  advent  of  Bannerman  the 
craze  went  over  to  the  roly-poly  type,  and  now  we 
are  being  threatened  with  half  a  dozen  more. 

*'The  Bannerman  blood  will  shorten  up  the  body 
of  any  strain  that  it  is  mixed  with,  and  also  the 
head  and  neck;  it  is  also  all  right  in  hunting  the 
rabbits  you  have  in  your  locality,  but  up  here  the 
white  hare  is  the  game,  and  so  far  as  I  have  tried 
them,  the  Bannermans  can't  stay  the  trip.  Jack 
B.,  the  sire  of  Blue  Jacket,  was  a  good  'one-day' 


174  Forty  Years  Beagling 

dog,  but  take  him  on  a  'two-day'  trip  and  he  wasn't 
in  it  on  the  second  day,  while  the  Blue  Caps  would 
have  to  be  pulled  out  with  a  lead.  Mr.  Kreuder 
afterwards  ran  Jack  at  the  National  and  New  Eng- 
land trials,  but  he  won  nothing  except  the  special 
for  novice.  I  had  a  dozen  Blue  Cap  bred  ones  at 
the  time  that  could  beat  him,  both  in  voice  and  hunt- 
ing. I  sold  most  of  his  get  South.  I  have  one  dog, 
a  litter  brother  to  Blue  Jacket,  that  is  good.  Elora 
Blue  Belle,  the  dam  of  Blue  Jacket,  was  a  12  inch 
dark  blue  ticked  bitch,  very  cobby  built,  with  lots 
of  character  and  quality,  which  came  from  the 
Rowett  blood  in  her  dam.  I  started  to  make  a 
champion  of  her  but  got  up  against  a  game  that 
made  me  sick.  She  was  a  grand  breeder,  but  has 
now  gone  where  good  dogs  go.  I  was  going  to  give 
you  the  history  of  her  dam  and  grand  dam,  but  find 
I  am  using  up  all  my  time  without  saying  anything 
about  Crowner.  Unfortunately  I  never  saw  that 
dog.  I  saw  his  dam,  Betty,  at  Detroit  show  in 
1887,  a  few  days  before  she  whelped  him.  She  was 
a  typical  Bowett  and  way  ahead  of  her  class,  but 
was  turned  down  for  being  in  whelp.  Just  why 
that  is  considered  a  fault,  I  never  could  find  out. 
I  wouldn't  hesitate  to  buy  a  bitch  in  that  state,  and, 
why  not  judge  her,  too?  I  have  Betty's  record 
somewhere  but  cannot  lay  my  hand  on  it  just  now. 


Field  Trial  Beagle  Type  175 

I  remember  she  had  the  glorious  color  which  is  the 
badge  of  all  the  Rowett  tribe.  Crowner  went  into 
the  hands  of  Dan  O'Shea,  who,  in  the  early  days  of 
bench  shows,  won  everything  in  sight  between  To- 
ronto and  New  Orleans.  Dan  was  disqualified 
when  he  bought  Crowner,  and  the  dog  was  never 
shown  much,  and  I  have  no  recollection  of  what  he 
won.  He  was  a  show  dog,  or  O'Shea  would  have  no 
use  for  him.  Dan  knows  all  about  beagles,  but 
don't  care  to  teach  any  one  else.  Crowner  must 
be  out  of  it  now,  as  he  was  w^helped,  June,  1887. 
The  dog  Chimer  I  never  saw,  nor  any  of  his  get.  I 
have  had  grandsons  and  granddaughters,  all  fairly 
good,  but  hard  to  say  where  their  good  or  bad 
points  came  from. 

"I  hear  a  good  bit  of  the  Hempstead  Beagles 
(J.  L.  Kernochan,  master),  but  have  never  seen 
any  of  them.  I  don't  like  the  foxhound  type  of 
head;  a  beagle  should  have  a  head  of  his  own.  How- 
ever, new  blood  is  needed,  and  we  will  find  out  in 
time.  I  would  not  breed  from  a  beagle  that  mopes ; 
a  beagle  should  always  be  jolly  and  merry.  I  was 
holding  a  brother  to  Flash,  an  excellent  hunter,  but 
he  got  kicked  by  a  horse  and  rendered  useless,  and 
Old  Drum  is  laid  out  with  paralysis,  so  I  am 
through  selling  until  I  see  how  my  young  stock 
turns  out.    I  am  not  trying  to  breed  the  field  trial 


176  Forty  Years  Beagling 

kind.  I  want  a  dog  to  take  a  trail  and  follow  it 
steadily,  English  style.  Field  trials  are  develop- 
ing a  lanky,  light-boned  hound,  all  nose  and  legs. 
The  handlers  kick  up  the  hare,  the  dogs  are  put  on 
and  charge  after  it  like  whippets.  When  it  doubles, 
they  are  helped  to  find  the  trail  again,  and  when  the 
rabbit  goes  to  earth,  which  it  soon  does,  the  judge 
gives  the  prize  to  the  dog  that  ran  the  fastest.  Such 
a  hound  is  of  no  use  here,  except  in  South-western 
Ontario.  And  then  Ringleader  and  Sailor  both  win 
on  the  bench  under  the  same  judge.  It's  all  very 
funny." 

Mr.  MacAleer  replies  to  Mr.  Card's  slur  upon 
field  trials  hurting  the  beagle  breed  in  the  following 
letter  a  short  time  later:  "Now  while  it  is  very  evi- 
dent that  Mr.  Card  knows  a  whole  lot  about  beagles, 
I  cannot  fully  agree  with  him  in  regard  to  field 
trials  injuring  the  little  hound.  I  may  be  making  a 
very  broad  statement,  but  I  cannot  help  it,  when  I 
claim  field  trials  have  done  more  in  the  last  four  or 
five  years  in  advancing  the  true  beagle  or  working 
beagle,  than  bench  shows  have  ever  done;  and  the 
only  beagle  that  should  be  allowed  to  live  is  the 
worldng  beagle.  If  we  want  a  house  pet  why  not 
take  a  sweet  little,  watery-eyed  pug,  or  some  other 
breed  created  especially  for  that  purpose. 

"Mr.  Card  says  'I  am  not  trying  to  breed  the  field 


Field  Trial  Beagle  Type  177 

trial  kind ;  I  want  a  dog  to  take  a  trail,  and  follow 
it,  steadily:  'English  style.' 

"Does  Mr.  Card  estimate  that  the  winners  at  our 
recent  trials  cannot  take  a  trail  and  follow  it  stead- 
ily? He  says  'Field  trials  are  developing  a  lanky, 
light-boned  hound,  all  nose  and  legs;  the  handlers 
kick  up  the  hare,  etc. ;'  I  wonder  at  what  trials  did 
Mr.  Card  see  this  class  of  dog  win,  or  did  he  ever 
see  a  field  trial  run?  I  must  admit  that  I  have 
never  attended  any  of  the  Eastern  trials,  but  I 
have  run  up  against  the  winners  of  those  trials  twice 
at  the  Central  Trials,  and  must  say  I  found  them 
pretty  much  the  same  kind  of  dogs  I  would  take 
with  me  were  I  going  for  a  day's  sport  afield,  or  to 
fill  a  bag  with  rabbits. 

"By  the  way,  I  find  field  trial  winners  make  very 
satisfactory  shooting  dogs,  and  if  Mr.  Card  will  at- 
tend the  National  or  Central  Trials  next  fall,  I 
think  we  can  show  him  a  kind  of  beagle  that  he  is 
evidently  not  familiar  with ;  one  that  is  not  only  able 
to  take  a  trail  and  follow  it  steadily,  but  can  catch 
a  turn  once  in  a  while,  and  kick  up  a  rabbit  occa- 
sionally, while  brushing  around. 

"I  have  heard  some  lamenting  the  loss  of  that 
soft  pleading  eye,  so  desirous  in  the  show  beagle. 
I  have  seen  this  eye,  have  had  it  turned  on  me  when 
the  poor  little  owner  crouched  trembling  at  my  feet, 


178  Forty  Years  Beagling 

pleading  with  me  not  to  fire  that  horrid  gun ;  again, 
then,  have  I  seen  that  soft  pleading  glance.  Again, 
when  the  game  took  refuge  in  a  thicket  of  briars  and 
thorn  brush,  that  soft  pleading  eye  would  say  plain 
as  could  be,  'Oh !  do  go  in  and  drive  out  that  nasty 
rabbit  for  me,  I  can't  go  through  those  horrid 
briars.'  I  tell  you  those  eyes  make  a  very  pretty 
and  dramatic  effect,  but  I  don't  want  too  many  of 
them  in  a  beagle.  I  would  rather  have  a  little  snap 
and  fire  in  my  dog's  eye." 

Then  along  comes  Mr.  H.  L.  Kreuder  with  some 
interesting  facts  about  the  Rowett  hounds  brought 
out  by  the  Card  and  MacAleer  letters,  in  which 
h^  says:  "Mr.  Card  says  field  trials  are  not  im- 
proving or  advancing  the  breed,  because  they  have 
a  tendency  to  promote  speed  and  quality,  and  lose 
in  softness  of  eye  and  that  tender  affection  for 
which  so  many  beagles  are  admired.  The  new  is, 
however,  but  a  continuation  of  the  old  and  in  keep- 
ing with  all  matters,  modernized  by  men  who  devote 
themselves  industriously  and  intelligently  to  the 
art  of  improvement.  The  true  bred  beagle  was  first 
introduced  into  this  country  about  1875,  and  I  be- 
lieve by  General  Rowett  of  Carlinville.  In  judg- 
ing from  the  present  dogs  now  performing  in  our 
trials,  and  seen  at  our  bench  show^s,  his  dogs  must 
have  been  'gold,  and  all  gold,'  to  have  withstood 


Field  Trial  Beagle  Type  179 


all  the  breeding,  and  yet  today  be  clearly  traceable 
as  of  the  'Rowett'  strain.  General  Rowett's  orig- 
inal importations  were  Sam,  Dolly,  Major,  Warrior 
and  some  others  less  well  loiown  or  remembered. 
From  this  original  blood  eminated  Lee,  Rosey, 
Rambler,  Rall}^,  Countess,  Venus,  Diana,  and  many 
other  good  and  tried  veterans  now  gone. 

"Some  few  years  later  in  the  early  eighties,  Mr. 
N.  Elmore,  of  Granby,  Connecticut,  imported 
Ringwood  and  Countess,  who  was  by  Bismarck  ex 
Gayless.  Mr.  Colin  Cameron  of  Brickville,  Penn- 
sylvania, and  Captain  William  Assheton  of  Rock 
Springs,  Virginia,  becoming  interested,  brought 
out  Racket,  by  Rally  ex  Louise,  she  by  Lee  ex 
Rosey,  also  Rally  by  the  original  Sam  ex  Dolly. 

"Mr.  Pottinger  Dorsey  of  Newmarket,  Mary- 
land, maintained  the  original  'Rowett'  blood,  up  to 
his  recent  death,  and  probably  is  credited  with 
breeding  more  real  good  beagles  than  any  other 
man  in  this  country,  both  for  work  and  beauty.  The 
list  of  beagles  bred  are  too  numerous  to  mention, 
but  principally  among  them  were,  Fitz-Hugh  Lee, 
Jupiter,  Lee  2nd,  Potomac,  Storm  Cloud,  Wander- 
er, Emiline,  Venus  and  many  others.  These  dogs 
have  now  nearly  all  passed  away  [1898],  yet  at  the 
present  time  at  our  field  trials,  as  well  as  bench 
shows,  there  will  be  found  many  of  the  pui'e  Rowett 


180  Forty  Years  Beagling 

blood  still  in  the  front.  Of  more  recent  years,  many 
new  importations  have  again  come  into  this  country, 
coming  direct  from  the  same  original  forest  to  be 
linked  and  woven  after  years  of  separation.  What 
the  futm-e  will  do  as  the  result,  time  alone  will 
tell." 

And  now  comes  "Comedy"  in  defense  of  Mr. 
Card,  with:  "The  remarks  of  Mr.  MacAleer  lead 
me  to  think  he  interpreted  Mr.  Card's  letter  to 
favor  the  toy  beagle  with  all  his  faults,  yet  a  care- 
ful perusal  of  it  shows  that  everything  points  the 
other  way.  As  I  do  not  know  Mr.  MacAleer,  or 
his  beagles  nor  have  I  ever  seen  one  of  his  breeding 
or  any  record  of  their  field  performances,  I  cannot 
criticise  them  favorably  or  otherwise.  Of  beagles 
bred  by  Mr.  Card  I  have  seen  a  number,  and  would 
like  to  see  more.  So  far  as  having  the  softness  that 
your  correspondence  deprecates  so  much,  I  would 
say  that  they  are  the  farthest  removed  therefrom, 
of  any  beagle  of  my  acquaintance,  and  Mr.  Mac- 
Aleer will  see  on  second  perusal  that  Mr.  Card  de- 
precates the  goggle-eyed  kind,  but  he  is  right  re- 
garding the  beagle  having  a  head  of  his  own,  for 
although  we  need  much  attention  being  given  to 
such  properties  as  feet,  legs,  coat,  etc.,  some  atten- 
tion should  surely  be  given  to  beagle  expression, 
and  it  is  in  these  directions  that  the  Elora  dogs  are 


Field  Trial  Beagle  Type  181 

strong.  But  their  specialty  seems  to  be  in  their  in- 
chnation  to  hunt,  and  that  in  a  business-like  manner 
from  the  moment  they  are  slipped  until  they  are 
again  coupled,  the  hunting  being  of  the  kind  termed 
*heady,'  not  an  inch  of  ground  being  left  untried, 
unless  a  trail  is  sooner  struck,  in  which  latter  case 
it  is  followed  at  a  good  rate  of  speed  to  a  start  and 
with  an  unusually  rattling  drive;  to  use  the  ex- 
pression of  a  recent  writer,  they  work  like  spaniels, 
quarter  like  pointers,  drive  like  greyhounds  and 
have  voices  that  wake  the  melodious  echoes,  and  al- 
though Mr.  Card  is  not  breeding  the  field-trial  kind, 
the  object  that  called  out  the  letter  by  you  was  to 
buy  a  dog  for  field-trial  purposes  from  him. 

"That  the  field  trials  have  lost  us  much  and 
gained  us  some  is  patent  to  all;  that  inbreeding 
may  have  done  worse  is  also  probable,  but  to  go 
away  from  the  standard  as  laid  down  and  say  the 
Rowett  stock  is  incorrect  in  type,  is  more  than  any 
breeder  of  experience  would  dare  to  successfully 
argue  and  carry  in  practice,  however  much  he  might 
wish  to  run  a  beagle  for  five  or  six  minutes  at  a 
time  for  the  sake  of  the  dollars  or  the  rabbits. 

"Although  I  doubt  if  Mr.  Card  shoots  over  his 
beagles,  I  have  yet  to  hear  of  a  gunshy  dog  or  bitch 
from  his  kennels,  and  it  may  be  owing  to  the  fact 
that  there  are  no  'negro'  hunters  in  the  neighbor- 


182  Forty  Years  Beagling 

hood  of  his  hunting  grounds.  If  Mr.  MacAleer 
would  hke  to  find  out  the  kind  of  beagle  Mr.  Card 
breeds,  let  him  try  one  of  them  in  a  fight  against  a 
bull  terrier,  as  a  man  of  my  acquaintance  had  to 
kill  his  beagle  on  account  of  his  pugnacit}^  Now, 
as  neither  Mr.  Card  nor  the  writer  has  any  of  this 
stock  for  sale,  and  as  both  breed  for  their  own 
amusement  first,  and  for  the  market  last,  it  is  left 
with  you  readers  to  judge  as  to  what  interest  the 
writer  has  in  replying  to  the  uncalled-for  remarks 
of  Mr.  MacAleer.  That  the  writer  is  responsible 
for  the  publication  of  Mr.  Card's  letter  is  the  excuse 
for  replying  to  Mr.  MacAleer.  Further,  that  it  is 
unlikely  he  will  again  favor  the  New  England,  Cen- 
tral or  National  Club's  trials  with  his  presence  and 
experience  of  thirty  or  forty  years  as  a  beagle 
breeder,  which  is  regrettable. 

"He  is,  I  understand,  contemporary  with  the  men 
who  introduced  the  beagle  to  this  country,  and  hav- 
ing tried  all  the  blood  that  is  of  any  repute  on  this 
side  of  the  pond,  as  well  as  some  that  was  directly 
imported,  I  should  be  inclined  to  think  that  some 
weight  should  be  given  his  opinions.  Besides  all 
this,  he  has  maintained  the  breed  in  its  traditional 
use  as  a  hound  for  pastime,  not  pot-hunting,  pre- 
ferring to  destroy  impromising  specimens  witli 
crooked  legs,  long  backs,  disinclination  to  hunt,  etc., 


Field  Trial  Beagle  Type  183 

to  placing  them  on  the  market  to  perpetuate  their 
disabilities,  as  is  often  done. 

"To  use  Mr.  Card's  expression  he  is  *not  a  dog 
man,  but  a  plain  old  farmer,'  who  takes  his  pleasui'e 
in  a  rural  way,  and  I  should  imagine  from  what  I 
have  learned,  shows  more  of  the  science  of  breeding 
for  pure  sport  and  the  love  of  it  than  many  better 
advertised  men. 

"I  know  nearly  all  the  strains  of  pure  beagles 
that  have  been  introduced  into  this  country,  as  well 
as  some  others,  and  I  have  yet  to  find  the  equal  of 
the  Elora  beagles  as  all-round  fielders  that  can 
drive  in  the  style  of  an  English  hound  on  his  native 
heath,  six  days  a  week  on  white  hares,  or  5000  hours 
a  year  on  cotton-tails." 

Mr.  Card  follows  up  the  controversy  in  another 
letter  to  the  American  Stock-Keeper  in  which  he 
said:  "As  I  am  only  indirectly  responsible  for 
starting  the  discussion  of  the  beagle  question  in 
your  columns,  I  would,  perhaps,  show  wisdom  by 
keeping  out  of  it,  but  there  is  one  point  which  ought 
to  be  settled.  I  noted  carefully  in  your  remarks 
on  the  head  question,  and,  while  I  am  aware  there 
is  no  one  better  qualified  than  yourself  to  give  an 
opinion,  I  think  my  reasons  for  differing  with  you 
as  to  be  worth  stating.  That  we  see  so  many  dif- 
ferent types  of  head,  and  hear  so  many  different 


184  Forty  Years  Beagling 

opinions  about  them,  seems  to  me  to  be  due  to  the 
fact  that  the  standard  is  a  little  hazy. 

"When  bench  shows  were  started  in  this  country 
'Stonehenge'  was  the  authority  by  whose  standards 
all  breeds  were  judged.  AJl  that  'Stonehenge' 
said  about  beagles  was :  'like  the  foxhound  but  with 
head  and  ears  more  like  the  bloodhound.'  This  de- 
scription did  not  fit  the  Rowett  head,  so  the  Eng- 
lish-American Beagle  Club  made  a  standard  of 
their  own. 

"They  started  in  by  giving  the  beagle  a  full,  dark 
eye  and  pleading  expression,  and  ended  by  saying 
he  should  be  a  miniature  foxhound.  Here  was  au- 
thority for  three  distinct  types,  and  soon  we  had 
another  that  won  without  authority.  Now  which 
is  right? 

"The  bloodhound  head  has  never  been  much  in 
evidence  in  this  country  and  does  not  seem  to  have 
found  favor  anywhere.  I  do  not  think  that  the 
heavy  muzzle  and  stern  expression  of  the  foxhound 
look  right  on  a  small  hound  like  the  beagle,  and  I 
do  not  see  any  use  for  it,  as  they  are  not  expected  to 
break  up  their  game.  The  old  Rowetts  all  had  long, 
light,  clean-cut  heads,  dark  eyes  and  innocent  ex- 
pression; but  no  snappier  or  gamer  hounds  ever 
lived.  Came  into  the  ring  on  their  toes;  flag  up; 
seized  the  first  dog  they  could  reach  and  fought  like 


Field  Trial  Beagle  Type  185 

terriers.     Their  descendants  will  do  it  yet,  if  bred 
right. 

"The  trouble  with  the  full  eye  is  that  it  has  been 
exaggerated.  Breeders  who  thought  they  couldn't 
get  too  much  of  a  good  thing,  bulged  out  the  eyes, 
until  skull  and  jaw  both  got  out  of  shape.  If  a 
beagle  refuses  to  face  briars  when  he  carries  eyes 
that  you  could  hang  your  hat  on,  or  tackle  a  bull 
terrier,  when  he  has  a  jaw  too  short  to  eat  his 
dinner,  I  commend  his  discretion.  The  trouble 
with  my  beagles  has  always  been  a  lack  of  discre- 
tion, not  the  other  part  of  valor.  However,  I  am 
not  trying  to  set  up  a  standard  of  my  own.  Let  the 
matter  be  discussed  till  the  Beagle  Club  settles  it 
in  some  shape.  We  want  only  one  type  of  head  and 
we  want  it  good. 

"I  see  Mr.  Kreuder  states  that  I  said  field  trials 
are  not  improving  the  beagle  because  they  are  not 
promoting  quality.  He  must  have  read  my  letter 
carelessly  as  he  is  too  old  a  hand  to  call  long  legs 
and  body  quality.  I  also  note  a  few  other  mistakes 
which  it  might  be  as  well  to  correct.  Major  was 
not  one  of  the  Bowett  dogs;  he  was  first  used  by 
Mr.  Dorsey;  Countess,  Venus  and  Diana  were  also 
some  of  Mr.  Dorsey's  original  stock.  Champion 
Lee  being  the  first  Bowett  used  by  that  gentleman. 
"Captain  Assheton  imported  several  beagles  that 


186  Forty  Years  Beagling 

exerted  an  influence  on  our  present-day  stock. 
From  one  paii- — Rattler  and  Ladybird — was  bred 
Victor,  one  of  the  greatest  sires  of  field  stock  ever 
seen  in  this  country.  From  another  imported  pair 
— Blue  Cap  and  Blue  Bell — the  Captain  bred  the 
Blue  Cap  that  came  to  Canada,  and  as  the  Blue 
Caps  are  still  noted  as  a  hunting  strain  I  will  de- 
scribe him.  He  lacked  the  finely  chiseled  head  of 
the  Rowetts,  and  his  ears  were  short  and  thick ;  and 
as  he  carried  them  a  little  up  when  in  action,  he 
appeared  broader,  flatter  in  skull.  He  was  longer 
in  body  than  the  Rowetts,  and  not  straight  in  front. 
The  short  ears  re-appeared  in  a  great  many  of  his 
descendants ;  the  long  body  less  frequently  and  the 
crooked  legs  very  rarely.  In  eye  and  expression 
he  was  more  like  the  foxhound,  but  lacked  the 
heavy  muzzle  of  that  type. 

"After  coming  to  Canada,  his  services  were  con- 
fined to  his  owner's  kennel,  so  his  descendants  are 
not  so  numerous  as  Victor's.  He  sired  a  few  bench 
winners,  but  hare-hunting  was  his  owner's  hobby 
and  it  is  mostly  through  hunters  that  his  stock  is 
known.  In  a  thirty-five  year's  experience  with  rab- 
bit hounds  I  never  met  another  dog  possessing  that 
indefinable  quality  which,  for  want  of  a  better  name 
we  define  hunting  sense,  nor  did  I  ever  see  his  equal 
for  scent.     For  voice,  courage  and  endurance  he 


Field  Trial  Beagle  Type  187 

was  way  above  the  average,  consequently  as  a  field 
dog,  either  for  sport  or  meat,  he  was  a  star  per- 
former. 

"Dodge's  Champion  Rattler,  a  brother  to  Cham- 
pion Lee,  was  a  Rowett  dog  that  left  his  mark  on 
the  pedigrees  of  nmnerous  bench  and  field  beagles 
of  the  present  day,  but  the  best  known  bench  dogs 
of  early  times  were  in  the  kennel  of  Dan  O'Shea. 
The  pedigree  of  his  little  bitch.  Champion  Music, 
seems  to  be  a  mystery,  but  in  type  she  was  Rowett 
pure  and  simple.  I  saw  her  both  on  the  bench  and 
in  the  kennel.  From  this  bitch  and  the  Rowett  dog. 
Rover,  O'Shea  bred  his  Champion  Rattler,  Cham- 
pion Music  2nd,  and  Champion  Mischief,  and  with 
this  team  and  their  descendants  won  about  every- 
thing he  tried  for,  which  was  nearly  all  that  was 
hung  up  between  '82  and  '88.  Dan's  dogs  were  all 
so  nearly  alike  that  it  was  said  two  names  fit  the 
whole  pack.  Certain  it  is  that  he  exhibited  them  in- 
discriminately in  champion,  open  and  puppy  classes 
and  was  never  detected  but  once.  Mr.  O'Shea 
knew  a  good  thing  when  he  had  it,  and  Champion 
Rattler  3rd  was  about  the  only  one  of  note  that 
left  his  kennel. 

"Among  the  early  importers  of  beagles  was  Mr. 
George  Featherstone,  of  Paris,  Ontario,  who 
brought  over  a  dog  and  two  bitches  which  he  pro- 


188  Forty  Years  Beagling- 

cured  from  the  Darlington  show  in  1877.  A  few 
of  their  progeny  were  exhibited  here  but  were 
downed  by  the  Rowetts.  Mr.  Featherstone  valued 
them  highly  for  hunting  and  seldom  parted  with 
one.  I  had  a  pair  from  him  and  mention  them  to 
illustrate  the  head  question.  The  dog  was  a  min- 
iature English  foxhound,  head  and  all.  The  bitch 
had  the  bloodhound  head  to  a  demonstration:  peak, 
wrinkle,  haw,  flew,  and  all.  Both  had  very  wide 
nostrils.  This  strain  were  'heady'  hunters,  but  ap- 
pear to  have  lacked  the  sterhng  qualities  necessary 
to  hand  down  their  names  to  posterity. 

*'The  most  cowardly  beagle  I  ever  saw  was  a 
sourfaced  duffer  with  a  foxhound  head,  and  he  was 
so  gunshy,  that  if  caught  out  in  a  thunderstorm,  he 
would  try  to  climb  a  tree.  Whether  the  Banner- 
man  type  of  head  is  right  or  not,  there  is  no  dis- 
counting their  courage. 

"As  I  learn  from  your  news  column  that  he  (Mr. 
MacAleer)  has  traded  his  field-trial  winner  for  a 
field  dog,  'even  up,'  it  is  useless  to  say  anything 
about  that  part  of  the  subject,  as  example  is 
stronger  than  precept.  The  advice  as  to  the  dis- 
posal of  gunshy  beagles  and  his  opinion  of  type 
lead  me  to  believe  that  the  only  kind  of  beagle  with 
which  he  is  much  acquainted  is  the  negro  rabbit 
dog.    English  beagles  have  been  bred  for  ages  to 


Field  Trial  Beagle  Type  189 

hunt  without  the  gun,  and  the  majority  of  them 
view  it  with  alarm  on  fii'st  acquaintance,  but  soon 
become  accustomed  to  it,  being  totally  unlike  setters 
or  spaniels.  The  latter  breeds  are  bred  to  the  gun, 
and  when  one  of  them  is  gunshy  he  has  it  sure, 
and  treatment  that  will  cure  any  beagle  would  ruin 
the  bird  dog.  Any  beginner  who  kills  a  gunshy 
beagle  is  doing  an  injustice  to  the  dog  and  lighting 
his  own  pipe  with  good  money. 

"My  thanks  are  due  to  'Comedy'  for  his  able  de- 
fence of  me,  but  as  he  admits,  he  has  only  himself 
to  blame  for  the  trouble.  He  is  a  stranger  to  me, 
one  letter  each  way  being  the  only  correspondence 
we  ever  had,  and  I  never  had  the  pleasure  of  meet- 
ing him  or  selling  him  a  dog." 

Mr.  MacAleer  replies,  referring  to  his  letter 
stating  that  the  only  part  of  Mr.  Card's  letter  he 
took  exception  to  was  where  he  expressed  his  opin- 
ion that  field  trials  were  developing  a  light-boned, 
lanky  hound,  all  legs,  etc. 

"Any  one  can  make  an  assertion,  but  sometimes 
we  have  to  resort  to  facts  and  figures,  to  prove  the 
truth  of  it.  If  Mr.  Card  or  'Comedy'  can  point  out 
to  me  one  beagle  that  has  been  placed  at  our  recent 
field  trials,  as  being  lanky  and  light  boned,  all  legs 
and  nose,  I  would  be  pleased  to  know  which  one  it 
is.    Perhaps  'Comedy'  will  say  he  never  made  this 


190  Forty  Years  Beagling 

assertion,  but  it  amounts  to  just  the  same  thing 
when  Mr.  Card  does  so  and  'Comedy'  says,  my  re- 
marks to  the  contrary  were  entirely  uncalled  for. 
"Pilot  won  first  in  All  Age,  and  Championship 
at  the  National  Trials  in  1896.  This  is  proof  that 
he  is  of  the  field-trial  kind,  or  the  kind  field  trials  are 
developing.  Does  Mr.  Card  call  him  a  lanky,  light- 
boned  whippet,  and  does  'Comedy'  think  Mr.  Card 
has  just  hit  the  nail  on  the  head  in  doing  so?  Your 
correspondent  may  be  a  breeder  of  many  years 
standing  and  know  a  great  deal  about  the  different 
strains  of  beagles,  but  I  must  say  'there  are  others' ; 
probably  as  well-known  as  any  among  them  are 
Mr.  G.  F.  Reed  and  'Dan'  Summers  (died  June, 
1920). 

"I  suppose  those  men  feel  now  as  if  they  had 
nothing  more  to  live  for  when  such  an  old  breeder 
tells  them  they  have  spent  their  dollars  and  years 
in  breeding  up  a  pack  of  long-legged  whippets  that 
can  run  a  hare  only  by  sight  and  fit  Mr.  Card's 
conception  of  a  field  trial— "The  handlers  kick  up 
the  hare,  the  dogs  are  put  on,  and  charge  after  it 
like  whippets.  When  it  doubles  they  are  helped  to 
find  the  trail  again,  and  when  the  rabbit  goes  to 
earth  ...  the  judge  gives  the  prize  to  the  dog 
that  ran  the  fastest.' 

"I,  for  one,  think  that  our  field  trials  have  been 


Field  Trial  Beagle  Type  191 

judged  by  practical  beagle  men;  men  who  have  the 
advancement  of  the  beagle  at  heart,  and  to  have 
such  an  eminent  breeder  as  Mr.  Card  make  the 
statement  in  regard  to  their  judgment,  is,  to  say 
the  least,  a  little  hard  on  them.  I  am  not  trying  to 
advocate  or  deprecate  any  particular  strain  of 
beagles,  for  my  own  pack  is  composed  of  several 
different  strains,  and  while  they  are  neither  lanky 
nor  light-boned,  they  have  speed  and  endurance 
enough  to  run  a  rabbit  stiff. 

"Perhaps  'Comedy'  would  like  to  see  a  brace  of 
Pennsylvania  beagles  run  a  rabbit  stiff !  In  regard 
to  the  Elora  beagle  engaging  a  fighting  bull  terrier 
in  a  deadly  combat  for  half  an  hour,  I  have  only  this 
to  say:  if  I  owned  a  fighting  bull  terrier  that 
couldn't  kill  a  beagle  in  half  an  hour,  I  would  kill 
the  bull  terrier  and  keep  the  beagle." 

A  contributor  who  signs  himself  "Beagle"  says 
that  these  controversies  are  a  good  thing  for  the 
breed  and  that  more  of  the  old  breeders  ought  to 
be  heard,  then  we  would  soon  learn  which  is  the 
right  type  of  beagle.  Referring  to  Mr.  MacAleer's 
letters  he  suggests  that  "if  Mr.  MacAleer  had  asked 
Mr.  Card  and  'Comedy'  how  many  beagles  they 
had  seen  winning  in  field  trials,  with  nice  head  and 
square  muzzles  it  would  have  been  more  to  the 
point.    I  have  been  to  a  good  many  field  trials  but 


192  Forty  Years  Beagling 

have   seen  but  few  beagles  with  nice  heads  and 
square  muzzles." 

With  all  this  controversy  in  mind  as  to  type,  it 
is  interesting  to  read  in  a  letter  from  G.  M.  Whar- 
ton, of  East  Islip,  New  York  (1898),  that  while 
we  all  know  the  Masters  of  Harriers  and  Beagles 
have  no  standard  in  England,  of  either  Harrier 
or  Beagle  he  quotes  the  standard  of  the  Beagle 
Club  of  England  as  of  August  1st,  1895,  and  states 
that  they  had  adopted  the  following: 

SCALE  OF  POINTS 

Head   20  Legs  and  feet 25 

Ears     10  Stern 5 

Eyes    5  Coat    10 

Body    15  Expression    5 

Hindquarters    10 

Total   109 

(Evidently 
a  misprint.) 
Our  present  standard  gives: 
Head—                                                    Body- 
Skull    5  Neck    5 

Ears     15  Shoulders  and  chest     10 

Muzzle,    jaws    and  Back   and  loins    .  .      15 

lips     5  Ribs     5 

Eyes    10  Coat  and  Stern — 

Running  gear —  Tail      5 

Forelegs   and   feet.      10  Coat     5 

Hips,  thighs,  H.legs     10 

Total 100 


Field  Trial  Beagle  Type  193 

Using  the  above  as  a  foundation,  a  committee  of 
well-known  beagle-men,  members  of  the  National 
Beagle  Club  of  America,  is  now  at  work  on  a  new 
standard,  which  will  be  shortly  offered  to  breeders 
in  this  country. 

The  new  or  present  standard  of  the  National 
Beagle  Club  was  accepted  in  1899,  at  the  February 
meeting  of  the  club  held  at  Madison  Square 
Garden. 

Commenting  on  the  discussion  between  Messrs. 
Card,  MacAleer  and  "Comedj^"  a  New  England 
breeder  who  uses  the  nom  de  plume  of  "Student," 
remarks  that  "If  there  were  not  another  show  to 
take  place  for  five  years,  nor  another  trial  run  in 
the  same  length  of  time,  it  is  the  writer's  opinion 
we  would  find  at  the  end  of  that  time  just  as  good 
and  better  sj^ecimens  for  the  bench  shows,  and  just 
as  true  and  steady  hunters  afield  as  exist  today, 
anywhere. 

"That  there  is  a  class  of  men  so  fond  of  these 
little  hounds  that  they  would  breed  them  irrespect- 
ive of  'show'  or  'trial'  inducements  and  that  it  would 
be  done  with  intelligent  interpretation  of  a  beagle 
standard  as  understood  by  this  class  from  long 
experience  and  knowledge  of  beagles,  seems  to  have 
been  shown  by  some  of  the  many  articles  that  have 
appeared  on  this  subject. 


194  Forty  Years  Beagling 

"So  is  this  matter  of  beagle  form  and  hunting 
characteristics,  one  of  individual  ideas,  or  do  these 
underlie  all  personal  opinions  that  rule,  which  pre- 
vails for  the  good  of  all? 

"There  are  some  that  would  have  a  little  compact 
12-inch  hound  of  true  and  steady  traihng  and  mod- 
erate 'running'  ability;  theirs  must  be  a  hound  of 
14I/2  inches,  with  considerable  daylight  under  him, 
and  one  that  would  push  his  quarry  straight  and 
fast,  even  at  the  cost  of  a  few  temporary  losses  and 
without  the  following  of  every  twist  and  turn  that 
ought  to  characterize  the  'trailing'  quality  of  every 
beagle.  Others  again  would  not  own  a  10-  or  12- 
inch  hound  as  a  gift,  because  he  would  not  cover 
territory  enough  for  them  or  push  the  game  fast 
enough  to  get  it  under  cover  where  a  ferret  could 
be  used.  And,  there  are  those  that  would  have 
nothing  but  11-  or  10-inch  hounds;  but  any  one  of 
these  wishes  or  desu^es  is  not  for  the  good  of  all. 

"It  is  well  there  should  be  some  leeway  in  the 
size  of  beagles,  for  in  this  topographically-varied 
New  England  of  ours,  we  have  use  for  all  sizes 
according  to  the  game  and  territory  upon  which  it 
may  be  hunted.  Still,  it  would  seem  we  ought  to 
be  able  to  agree  upon  some  definite  form  or  type, 
to  rule  the  same  in  all  sizes,  and  let  the  speed  be 
determined  bv  the  size  of  the  hound;  not,  as  the 


Field  Trial  Beagle  Type  195 

writer  heard  a  gentleman  remark  at  the  New  York 
Show  (1898)  :  'I  run  my  hounds  according  to 
speed,  not  size.' 

"It  is  true,  dogs  like  men  possess  different  and 
varying  temperaments,  and  some  beagles  there 
always  will  be  that  will  develop  greater  speed  than 
their  mate  of  equal  size;  but  that  is  the  exception, 
not  the  rule,  and  there  is  no  reason  why  fifteen  or 
twenty  couple  of  10,  12  or  15 -inch  beagles  can  not 
be  bred  that  will  work,  trail  and  pack  well  to- 
gether, but  with  very  little  difference  in  their  pace. 

"The  writer  has  among  his  beagles  a  small  12- 
inch  bitch,  cobby  and  well  put  together,  of  pure 
Rowett  strain,  that  will  run  a  perfect  streak  and 
out-foot  all  his  other  hounds.  It  is  safe  to  assume 
that  breeding  this  bitch  with  a  well-built  dog  of  like 
tendencj^,  and  continuing  in  such  breeding  would 
develop  a  cobby,  but  remarkably  fast  strain  of 
hounds.  But,  is  this  desirable?  Would  it  not  be 
better  to  take  some  careful-working,  moderate- 
running,  true-trailing,  full  and  musical-voiced  spec- 
imens and  breed  them,  thoughtfully  and  with  good 
judgment,  seeking  to  develop  all  these  finer  quali- 
ties and  characteristics  which  it  would  be  utterly 
impossible  to  get  in  a  much  more  rapid  hound? 

"It  seems  reasonable  to  assume  that  a  dog,  slash- 
ing right  and  left,  keyed  up  to  the  highest  possible 


196  Forty  Years  Beagling 

notch,  and  by  reason  of  his  breeding  unable  to  un- 
derstand the  excitement  of  the  hunt,  making  a  rush 
here  and  there  upon  scenting  game,  and  pushing  at 
the  top  of  his  speed  when  he  has  his  game  'straight- 
ened out,'  can  not  give  such  an  exhibition  of  all  the 
nicer  and  finer  qualities  that  a  more  moderate 
worker  can,  that  goes  systematically  about  his  busi- 
ness upon  first  scenting  a  track,  laying  out  his  work 
with  as  much  precision  and  care  as  a  prudent  man 
in  the  conduct  of  his  business. 

"The  writer  has  watched  hounds  when  they  first 
found  signs  of  a  track.  Their  tails  gave  the  first 
evidence  of  the  find ;  working  slowly  along,  a  turn, 
perhaps  was  made;  a  little  more  excitement,  and 
then  the  scent  was  lost.  Again  the  starting  point 
was  tried,  a  repetition  of  the  former  operation,  and 
then  they  swung  in  a  circle,  finding  the  track  further 
on;  and  so,  step  by  step  they  worked  closer  and 
closer  to  the  game,  scarce  a  whimper  escaping  them 
until  the  rabbit,  which  was  espied  carefully  jump- 
ing onto  a  rock  was  'jumped'  by  the  foremost 
hound,  and  then  there  was  music. 

"In  conclusion  I  would  say  there  are  portions 
of  New  England  in  which  15-inch  beagles  may 
furnish  better  sport  on  white  rabbits  or  hares  than 
11  or  12-inch  hounds,  but  I  maintain,  for  the  pur- 
pose of  using  beagles  to  shoot  over  them,  there  are 


Field  Trial  Beagle  Type  197 


portions  of  New  England,  where  a  pack  of  11 -inch 
hounds  is  amply  large  for  our  common  gray  rabbit, 
and  will  furnish  glorious  sport  indeed. 

"When  in  our  field  trials  that  point  is  reached, 
where  all  the  nicer  qualities  are  considered  and  the 
dogs  are  displaced  that  do  not  possess  them  and 
yet  do  not  manage  to  'get  there'  first  by  superior 
running  when  the  game  is  finally  on  the  'run,'  then 
thej^  will  prove  of  immense  good  to  the  beagle 
world,  and  not  until  then." 


CHAPTER   XIII 

TEACHING   YOUNG    HOUNDS   TO    HUNT 

THIS  interesting  and  instructive  article  is 
from  the  pen  of  "Comedy,"  and  should  be 
a  warning  to  those  who  do  not  always 
break  their  hounds  by  patience  and  kindness. 

"In  a  hunting  country  where  everybody  is  more 
or  less  interested  in  hunting,  the  headline  of  this 
article  is  used  very  frequently;  it  is  not  always 
apphed  to  the  preparing  of  the  young  hounds  for 
their  duties  afield,  but  is  used  on  almost  any  occa- 
sion where  a  youngster  of  any  kind  is  getting  a  new 
experience;  it  is  applied  sarcastically  occasionally 
to  the  older  individual  when  his  calculations  are 
upset. 

"The  education  of  the  young  hound  or  beagle  is 
not  alone  in  teaching  him  to  hunt,  that  ofttimes  is 
not  nearly  as  hard  as  teaching  him  what  not  to  hunt. 
There  are  many  things  that  the  inexperienced  bea- 
gle is  Hable  to  run  riot  on,  and  there  is  nothing  so 
good  as  a  season's  farm  experience  among  all  kinds 
of  domestic  and  farm  animals,  towards  giving  the 
youngster  a  good  education,  and  it  usually  speaks 

198 


Teaching  Young  Hounds  to  Hunt    199 

well  for  the  individual  if  he  is  reported  to  be  clever 
with  all  the  live  stock  including  the  feathered  stuff. 
He  will  also  in  this  way  learn  the  necessary  lessons 
regarding  skunks,  as  it  is  a  very  common  thing  to 
have  a  lot  of  young  dogs  run  on  the  trail  of  a  skunk 
when  returning  in  the  evening.  Should  the  house 
beagle  be  among  them  it  would  be  aw^kward,  or  if  a 
friend  be  along  the  experience  may  not  be  such  as 
he  will  care  to  repeat  and  so  a  good  disciple  may  be 
spoiled  in  the  making ;  or  again  on  the  return  home 
the  effects  of  a  contact  may  raise  a  skunk  in  the 
neighborhood  and  amongst  the  neighbors  if  you 
have  any. 

"I  have  found  that  sheep  are  a  great  temptation 
to  one  or  tv/o  green  puppies  and  sometimes  a  per- 
sistent one  will  lead  other  dogs  into  mischief  when 
they  have  been  without  the  necessary  work  for  some 
time.  This  rioting  seems  to  be  a  failing  more 
particularly  amongst  strains  that  are  shorter  eared 
and  clean  in  throat  and  free  from  dewlap;  such 
indications  probably  point  to  ancestry  that  have  a 
strain  of  foreign  blood  in  them  (is  other  than  hound 
in  some  form),  as  it  is  recognized  that  both  spaniel 
and  terrier  blood  have  been  used  with  the  idea  of 
gaining  certain  properties  in  a  short,  unscientific 
way. 

"The  fewer  youngsters  are  taken  out  at  a  time 


200  Forty  Years  Beagling 

the  better,  and  it  is  a  good  plan  to  be  sure  that  game 
will  be  started  whenever  a  backward  specimen  is 
to  be  taken  out  If  game  is  scarce  a  bagged  speci- 
men should  be  used  and  when  rabbits  are  the  game, 
this  is  easy  enough,  but  when  foxes  are  the  question 
it  is  less  convenient.  In  referring  it  to  be  easy  in 
the  case  of  rabbits,  it  may  be  borne  in  mind  that 
often  a. tame  specimen  can  be  used  several  times 
with  puppies,  as  the  rabbit  soon  learns  how  to  fool 
a  dog  and  I  have  seen  an  over-eager  puppy,  when 
running  in  full  view  to  be  completely  fooled,  by  the 
rabbit  just  squatting  and  the  dog  jump  clean  over 
it  as  a  stump.  A  tame  rabbit  can  be  used  in  close 
time  without  danger  of  incurring  any  penalty  un- 
der the  law. 

"It  is  not  a  good  plan  to  keep  youngsters  in  the 
woods  long  at  a  time,  particularly  if  they  show 
little  or  no  inclination  to  hunt,  as  not  infrequently 
happens.  Perseverance,  patience,  time  and  oppor- 
tunity will  make  almost  all  dogs  hunt  if  their  health 
is  good,  and  if  a  hound  at  ten  months  old  is  not 
doing  some  work,  suspect  that  he  is  sick  and  act 
accordingly.  Allowance  may  be  made  for  puppies 
bred  from  stock  that  has  been  for  other  than  field 
purposes  for  one  or  more  generations;  sometimes 
feeding  has  much  to  do  with  the  quality  of  life  a 
puppy  has,  and  whilst  I  do  not  believe  in  a  meat 


Teaching  Young  Hounds  to  Hunt    201 

feed  for  dogs  much  under  a  year  old,  yet  I  have  no 
patience  with  those  who  advocate  a  strict  meal  on 
biscuit  diet  for  a  working  dog.  It  may  be  and  is 
excellent  for  dogs  intended  solely  for  show  pur- 
poses and  for  dogs  that  are  inclined  to  put  on  fat. 
This  brings  me  to  the  question,  what  is  condition? 
Working  condition,  show  condition,  to  me  all  one, 
the  dog  is  in  show  condition  under  the  conditions  of 
which  he  best  does  his  work,  and  it  is  here  that  the 
biped  is  learning  a  lesson  in  hunting,  quite  as  much 
as  the  quadruped,  and  until  he  knows  every  one 
of  his  dogs  individually  he  can  rest  assured  that  he 
is  not  getting  the  best  results  from  them.  Some 
hounds,  like  some  men,  useless  for  good,  hard  work 
when  carrying  a  lot  of  flesh,  but  in  the  case  of 
hounds  it  appears  to  me  that  a  hound  that  has  to  be 
starved  to  hunt  is  a  very  undesirable  one.  I  do  not 
want  one  that  hunts  to  live,  but  prefer  the  one  that 
lives  to  hunt.  A  meat  dog,  a  nigger  dog,  or  a 
hound  that  you  can  see  to  read  a  newspaper  tlii^ough 
are  opprobrious  terms  to  apply  to  a  well-bred  dog, 
yet  there  are  times  and  specimens  which  such  terms 
fit  to  a  T. 

"The  owner  of  a  dog  should  be  the  judge  as  to 
what  constitutes  condition,  and  he  should  pride 
himself  when  showing  his  dog  or  dogs,  to  do  so  in 
that  condition  which  experience  teaches  is  the  one 


202  Forty  Years  Beagling 

under  which  his  dogs  do  their  best  work.  If  he 
takes  sufficient  pride  in  his  pack  they  will  eventually 
be  alike  in  looks,  type  and  condition  and  it  is  in 
learning  this  lesson  that  he  will  have  learned  with 
his  hounds  how  to  make  a  successful  quest  either 
on  field  or  bench,  for  it  ought  to  be  the  evenly 
matched  team  on  the  bench,  quality  being  near 
equal,  that  the  first  award  should  go  and  to  the 
most  even  working,  thorough  and  in  unison  pack 
that  should  influence  judges  in  making  their  de- 
cisions afield. 

"In  further  referring  to  condition,  a  hound  may 
be  moderately  fleshed,  good  in  coat  and  free  from 
any  skin  trouble,  and  yet  be  in  such  rank  condition 
that  he  feels  hke  a  jelly-fish  to  the  touch. 

"Again,  a  specimen  may  appear  as  though  he 
had  been  on  a  fox  trail  for  a  week  without  a  feed, 
yet  to  the  touch  there  won't  be  enough  flesh  to  find 
the  condition  of  the  muscle;  yet  another  may  look 
fat  and  incapable  of  work,  yet  on  putting  the  hand 
on  the  loins,  forearms  and  ham,  the  muscle  will  feel 
as  springy  as  a  piece  of  rubber.  The  first  two  will 
perhaps  have  had  from  half  an  hour  to  one  hour's 
attention  three  or  four  days  a  week.  The  last  will 
have  had  from  two  to  six  hours  hard  running  daily 
with  a  liberal  meat  feeding  and  be  ready  to  go  ten 
hours'  work  any  time. 


Teaching  Young  Hounds  to  Hunt    203 


"A  three  or  four  days'  show  will  give  the  two 
former  a  biscuit  belly,  i.e.,  they  will  be  distended 
from  the  extra  feeding.  The  latter  will  probably 
have  eaten  more  or  less  biscuit,  but  will  have  missed 
his  accustomed  meat  feed  and  will  weigh  less  at  the 
end  of  the  show  than  before.  Comments  on  which 
is  the  more  fit  for  work  intended  are  unnecessary." 

We  find  that  in  1898  Mr.  James  L.  Kernochan, 
the  owner  of  the  Hempstead  Beagles,  held  a  puppy 
show  for  beagles  which  were  walked  by  people  in 
that  neighborhood,  a  custom  that  prevails  in  Eng- 
land, but  which  did  not  meet  with  continued  suc- 
cess, though  there  were  some  twenty-nine  entries, 
so  the  show  was  not  repeated. 

The  next  innovation  in  the  American  Beagle 
world  w^as  the  purchase  by  the  National  Beagle 
Club  of  a  home  and  field  trial  grounds,  between 
Leesburgh  and  Aldie,  Virginia,  consisting  of  some 
600  acres  of  wonderful  rolling  country.  A  bench 
show  is  held  during  the  fortnight  of  the  trials,  gen- 
erally on  a  Sunday,  to  which  the  countryside  is 
invited  and  entertained  at  luncheon.  The  judges 
for  the  field  trials  and  bench  show  are  different 
gentlemen. 


CHAPTER   XIV 

TYPE 

y^LONG  in  the  summer  of  1899,  type  dis- 
AA  cussion  arises  again  in  the  Stock  Keeper, 
through  a  contribution  from  a  correspon- 
dent who  signs  himself  "Subscriber,"  who  starts 
out  by  saying  that  "he  is  glad  to  see  the  question 
as  to  what  is  the  true  type  in  beagles  and  particu- 
larly the  subject  of  voice  and  earage,  is  awakening 
so  much  interest.  I  disagree  with  those  who  think 
our  beagles  are  not  improving  in  type.  For  in- 
stance, at  the  trials  of  the  National  Beagle  Club, 
at  Hillsdale,  New  Jersey,  last  year,  a  most  decided 
improvement  could  be  noticed  over  three  or  four 
years  ago.  Many  of  the  hounds  then  would  have 
made  a  creditable  showing  in  the  ring.  'Comedy's' 
warning,  however,  as  to  voice  and  shortness  of  ear, 
should  be  heeded.  Instead  of  the  clear  bell-like 
voice  being  the  rule,  it  is  the  exception;  and  those 
hounds  having  it,  like  Somerset,  Willard  R.,  etc., 
can  be  counted  on  the  fingers.  Both  these  hounds 
have  good  long  ears." 

204 


Type  205 

Then  D.  E.  B.  O'Nair  harks  in  with  a  compli- 
ment to  the  editor  of  this  paper  for  his  note  of 
timely  warning  and  advice  regarding  type  in  bea- 
gles, and  continues  with:  "I  have  'said  my  say'  in 
different  papers  for  the  past  three  or  four  years, 
but  will  say  here  again,  I  really  have  been  scared 
or  worried  many  times,  to  see  and  hear  of  breeders 
sending  their  bitches  to  dogs  that  managed  in  some 
way  to  win  prizes  on  the  bench,  that  were  not 
perfectly  straight  in  front,  by  any  means,  and  who 
for  their  height  at  shoulder,  were  long  enough  to 
make  one  and  one-half  dogs  of  the  correct  type, 
and  whose  head  and  expression  (the  latter  one  of 
the  sweetest  qualities  as  far  as  outward  appearances 
go  that  a  well-bred,  typical  beagle  has)  were  almost 
like  what  I  imagine  a  dog  would  possess,  were  he 
a  cross  between  a  foxhound  and  a  bloodhound. 
Again,  dogs  that  are  somewhat  'up  on  legs'  with 
more  length  to  body  than  our  American  Beagle 
Standard  really  calls  for,  as  a  rule,  have  more  speed 
than  one  of  the  correct  sort,  and  if  at  the  trials, 
on  the  gray  or  ground  rabbit  (cottontail),  such  an 
one  is  at  the  end  of  the  race  ( the  hole  or  wall )  first, 
and  he  generally  is,  he  of  course  is  given  credit  for 
it,  and  perhaps  wins  over  one  of  the  correct  type, 
who  was  just  as  true  a  trailer,  just  as  brainy  a 
worker,  and  if  put  down  on  white  hare    (Lepus 


206  Forty  Years  Beagling 

Americanus)  for  an  all-day  or  half -day  race,  could 
prove  to  judges  and  spectators  that  he  had  more 
'sand'  and  true  hound  qualities  than  the  'sprinter' 
who  won  over  him  in  a  fifteen  or  twenty-five  minute 
race. 

"As  a  result  of  this  a  breeder  buys  the  winner 
of  the  fifteen  minute  race  to  use  in  his  kennel  as  a 
stud  dog.  He  'blows  his  horn'  (nobody  blames 
him  for  doing  so)  through  his  ad.,  and  planty  of 
others  send  bitches  to  this  dog  to  be  bred,  only  a 
few  who  know  their  business  and  know  a  'good 
thing'  when  they  see  it,  breed  to  the  dog  that  was 
defeated  and  as  a  consequence  there  are  far  more 
pups  sired  of  the  sort  that  are  'up  in  the  air,'  'long' 
and  'fast,'  all  of  which  are  qualities  that  a  real 
beagle  is  supposed  to  possess.  All  this  has  led  me 
to  conclude  many  times,  that  those  breeders  who 
have  a  good  trade,  who  have  good  dogs,  and  who 
stay  or  keep  their  dogs  in  their  kennels,  away  from 
shows  and  away  from  the  trials,  and  who  breed  for 
Standard  quahties,  and  who  have  the  satisfaction 
of  every  year  seeing  some  they  had  bred,  come 
nearer  to  it,  are  about  as  well  blessed  as  any  of 
them. 

"They  are  the  ones  that  may  be  the  means  of  yet 
preserving  the  true  type  of  beagles  after  this  craze 
for  speed  has  died  out,  and  when  men  who  know 


Type  207 

what  a  typical  beagle  really  is  are  engaged  to  judge 
the  breed,  and  who  have  as  much  'nerve'  as  the  dogs 
they  are  judging  and  dare  hand  the  blue  ribbon  to 
the  man  with  the  best  dog,  regardless  of  the  fact 
that  the  dog  is  American-bred,  and  a  new  one  to 
showgoers,  and  that  some  of  his  competitors  are 
millionaires,  with  imported  dogs  at  the  other  end 
of  the  chain  that  have  won  over  on  the  other  side. 

"I  honestly  think  that  we  have  as  good  beagles 
here  as  are  bred  in  England,  and  also  think  we  have 
American  judges  who  do  know  what  true  type  is 
and  dare  place  the  ribbons  accordingly." 

Then  along  comes  a  timely  article  in  the  Amer- 
ican Field  on  voice  which  says :  "There  is  one  point 
which  beagle  breeders  overlook  and  to  which  they 
might  well  pay  more  attention.  They  breed  for 
bench  qualities  and  endurance,  nose,  speed  and 
hunting  sense,  as  they  should,  but  how  many  of 
them  take  voice  into  consideration?  Yet  much 
enjoyment  of  the  hunt  depends  on  the  cry  of  the 
hounds.  Tradition  says  that  the  beagle  has  the 
sweetest  tongue  of  any  of  the  hound  family,  but  a 
spectator  at  any  of  our  field  trials  is  almost  ready 
to  believe  that  tradition  has  made  more  or  less  a 
mistake.  To  be  sure,  a  musical  voice  is  often  heard, 
but  there  are  altogether  too  many  squealers  and 
screamers.     If  Shakespeare  had  attended  a  trial 


208  Forty  Years  Beagling 

and  heard  a  couple  of  such  flyers  in  full  cry,  screech- 
ing like  fox-terriers  after  a  neighbor's  cat,  he  proba- 
bly would  not  have  written  of  'voices  matched  like 
bells.'  He  would  have  said  something  very  differ- 
ent. Yet  there  are  enough  beagles  blessed  with 
the  characteristic  voice  of  the  breed  to  make  us  wish 
there  were  more.  These  sportsmen  who  have  at- 
tended the  trials  and  heard  the  sweet  voices  of 
hounds  such  as  Millard,  Cry  Baby,  Royal  Kreuger, 
Ava  W.,  and  a  score  of  others  whose  names  will 
occur  to  any  beagle  fancier,  will  agree  that  there 
was  vastly  more  pleasui^e  in  listening  to  their  driv- 
ing than  there  was  in  hearing  the  shrieks  and 
screams  of  their  sharp -voice  rivals.  For  many  the 
cry  of  the  beagle  makes  the  hunt.  They  care 
nothing  for  the  game,  and  take  little  interest  in 
watching  the  patient,  careful  work  of  the  pack 
puzzling  out  a  difficult  trail.  They  take  their 
hounds  afield  for  the  music  alone.  Others  care 
much  more  for  the  game  and  little  for  the  tonguing, 
but  even  they  will  agree  that  a  sweet  hound  voice  is 
better  than  a  harsh  or  squeaky  one.  If  in  the  future 
the  beagle  breeders  will  pay  as  much  attention  to 
general  hunting  qualities  as  they  have  in  the  past, 
and  much  more  attention  than  they  have  done  to 
voice,  they  will  take  a  long  step  in  making  their 
hounds  what  they  ought  to  be — the  most  musical  of 


Type  209 

the  hound  family,  with  voices  as  clear  and  as  sweet 
as  a  chime  of  bells." 

In  the  following  June  (1900),  "Comedy"  starts 
another  interesting  discussion  by  bringing  out  the 
comparison  of  "Speed  vs.  Shoulder."  He  says: 
"We  have  certainly  reached  a  place  where  I  think 
we  have  speed  enough,  and  those  that  hunt  the 
cottontail  by  daylight  complain  all  the  time  that 
they  do  'not'  want  a  dog  or  dogs  that  will  push  a 
rabbit  hard,  as  he  will  run  to  burrow  with  a  moder- 
ately slow  beagle  quite  quick  enough  for  the  best 
results,  and  unless  one  is  looking  for  the  rabbit 
more  than  the  sport,  he  will  get  more  or  less  dis- 
gusted either  with  the  breed  of  rabbits  or  beagles. 

"In  connection  with  speed,  I  think  it  time  to 
notice  the  performances  of  certain  men  who  want 
to  breed  our  beagles  on  the  line  of  a  pointer  or 
setter,  with  the  points  for  speed  developed  to  such 
an  extent  that  everything  else  is  of  a  secondary  con- 
sideration. This  is  particularly  true  of  shoulder 
formation — 'a  beautiful,  clean  shoulder'  seeming 
to  some  to  be  the  sum  and  substance  of  the  whole 
beagle  formation.  Personally,  I  do  not  want  a 
setter  formation  of  shoulder,  and  if  it  is  accompa- 
nied by  only  a  fair  nose  and  more  or  less  moderate 
ears,  there  will  be  little  use  for  the  specimen,  unless 
under  exceptional  scenting  conditions. 


210  Forty  Years  Beagling 

"I  am  speaking  of  field  dogs,  and  the  field  dog 
should  be  a  show  dog,  every  and  all  the  time.  No 
breeder  should  attempt  one  or  the  other,  but  both, 
field  properties  first,  then  correct  conformation  to 
perform  their  duties.  A  very  lean  shouldered  dog 
will  be  very  apt  to  run  over  the  turns  when  the 
rabbit  is  at  top  speed,  and  unless  the  nose  and  trail- 
ing abilities  are  good,  the  chances  of  getting  another 
good  run  from  that  same  rabbit,  at  that  time,  will 
be  rather  slim. 

"I  do  think,  where  beagles  are  used  in  packs  of 
six  to  ten,  or  even  more,  that  a  leader  may  be  a 
little  lighter  put  up,  but  to  go  and  breed  a  lot  of 
clean-shouldered,  setter  type  dogs,  and  call  them 
beagles  is  an  injustice  to  the  famous  old  breed. 
And  our  American  standard,  was  it  not  made  to 
fit  the  Rowett  type  of  dog?  and  did  any  one  ever 
see  a  beagle  of  strong  Rowett  type  that  was  formed 
like  a  setter?  most  of  them  are  what  our  setter  men 
call  thick  in  shoulders,  but  they  have  the  disposition 
to  hunt,  and  hunt  all  day,  and  stay  till  the  night 
is  far  advanced  or  perhaps  into  the  next  day,  and 
whilst  they  can,  and  are  being  improved  in  earage 
and  head  substance,  I  doubt  if  the  disposition  to 
hunt  when  once  entered  to  game  will  ever  be  beaten 
by  any  strain  or  type. 

"Of  course,  individual  specimens  are  better  or 


Type  211 

worse,  but  as  a  strain  they  are  hunters,  maybe  with 
a  little  riotous  tendency,  which,  if  we  are  to  believe 
old  writers,  is  an  ancient  trait  of  the  beagle,  as  was 
the  harking  back  of  the  old  stock.  The  legs,  feet 
and  coat  are  good  generally,  as  is  the  stern  carriage 
and  body,  whilst  no  one  asks  for  better  combination 
of  colors.  As  an  improvement  the  Rowett's  head 
and  ears  can  stand  it,  and  if  we  must  clean  up  the 
shoulders  do  not  let  us  go  too  far,  we  are  not  whip- 
pet racing  or  running  field  trials  on  quail  or  Eng- 
lish hares. 

*'What  we  want  is  a  dog  that  will  keep  his  nose, 
not  to  the  ground  alone  but  right  on  the  trail,  from 
start  to  finish  without  cutting,  sheering,  or  running 
over,  and  with  a  voice  as  clear  as  ever  we  can  pro- 
duce and  as  much  of  it  as  the  dog  can  use  in  volume, 
but  no  one  that  tongues  on  the  slightest  provoca- 
tion, irrespective  of  whether  the  trail  is  fifteen 
minutes  or  fifteen  hours  old. 

"Once  again,  I  do  not  think  the  running  of  a 
rabbit  all  of  hunting  with  beagles,  as  much  as  I 
abhor  a  potterer,  neither  do  I  think  a  small  hound- 
colored  dog  is  always  the  best  beagle,  because  he 
has  a  clean  shoulder — not  that  I  want  a  wooden, 
stiff  shoulder  as  that  is  an  abomination.  It  may 
be  that  it  is  in  this  fad  for  clean  shoulders  that  we 
have  obtained  some  of  the  abominably  long  bodies 


212  Forty  Years  Beagling 

to  be  seen  quite  often,  if  so,  then  the  cry  for  clean 
shoulders  has  done  much  harm,  not  so  much  in  using 
the  blood  as  in  awarding  prizes  to  dogs  that  have 
been  aggravated  cases  of  long  barrels.  Of  course, 
if  the  standard  should  be  materially  altered  to  suit 
such  cases,  which  I  sincerely  hope  it  will  not,  then 
I  should  be  reluctantly  compelled  to  bow  to  de- 
cisions, but  as  long  as  it  stands  as  at  present,  long 
bodies  must  continue  to  receive  my  disapproval." 


G 


CHAPTER   XV 

ADVICE   TO   A   BEGINNER 

M.  W.  writes  under  the  above  caption  an 
article  in  the  summer  of  1900,  which 
brings  out  an  interesting  discussion.  In 
this  connection  it  might  be  of  interest  to  say  that 
at  this  time  Mr.  Wharton  bought  out  the  late 
James  L.  Kernochan's  hounds,  known  as  the 
Hempstead  Beagles. 

"Every  one  has  been  in  this  benighted  state  at 
one  time  or  another,  but  I  wish  to  address  myself 
particularly  to  the  one  who  wants  to  buy  a  good 
beagle  and  does  not  know  how  to  set  about  it.  Let 
him  not  be  in  a  hurry,  but  start  subscribing,  say  to 

,  in  order  to  familiarize  himself  with  the 

names  of  the  principal  beagle  breeders  and  their 
hounds. 

"Then,  if  possible,  attend  the  annual  trials  of  the 
National  or  New  England  [at  that  time  there  were 
not  as  many  field  trials  being  held  as  there  are  to- 
day] Beagle  Clubs  and  learn  what  sort  of  hound 
wins  in  the  field.  He  will  see  from  fifty  to  sixty 
beagles  and  all  at  theii'  best.    Their  owners  will 

213 


214  Forty  Years  Beagling 

gladly  make  him  welcome,  and  if  he  is  a  quiet,  un- 
assmiiing  chap,  anxious  for  mformation,  will  be 
only  too  happy  to  impaii:  such  as  they  themselves 
have  gathered.  They  are  practical  sportsmen,  each 
and  every  one.  and  do  not  confine  themselves  to 
theorizing  in  the  papers,  but  run  their  hounds,  and 
show  them  too,  when  the  time  comes. 

"The  beginner  will  not  have  to  wait  for  these 
shows  and  by  going  to  that  at  Xew  York,  Boston 
or  Philadelphia,  ^ill  see  some  of  the  best  known 
beagles  in  this  comitry.  Some  of  these  he  may 
recognize  as  having  been  at  the  trials  and  will  be 
surprised  to  find,  contrary  to  general  opinion,  that 
after  all  there  is  very  little  difference  in  the  type 
of  the  best  bench  and  working  hounds. 

"Pay  no  attention  to  the  man  who  has  nothing 
favorable  to  say  about  the  judge  or  the  homids 
exhibited,  and  who  remarks  in  a  casual  way  'that 
if  he"d  taken  the  trouble  and  entered  so-and-so,  he 
could  have  easily  won  first  prize.  If  the  begimier 
has  profited  by  his  visit  to  the  trials  and  has  fol- 
lowed the  awards  he  will  begin  to  feel  confident  as 
to  what  he  wants  and  will  make  the  necessary  busi- 
ness arrangements  with  tlie  man  he  knows  has  the 
right  kind  of  hounds;  whether  the  latter  cares  to 
sell  or  not  is  another  tiling.  Do  not  try  to  beat  him 
d^^^"!':  *  o  much;  if  his  hounds  are  good  they  are 


Advice  to  a  Beginner  215 

worth  the  money,  and  many  a  beginner  has  paid 
out  the  latter  without  getting  the  former." 

Then  along  comes  "C.  F.  H."  with  some  pithy 
references  to  previous  articles  and  asks  M.  W.  F." 
some  pertinent  questions  relative  to  his  advice  to 
beginners,  as  he  suggests  that  the  ''beginner"  and 
perhaps  a  few  who  would  not  class  themselves  as 
such,  can  stand  considerable  enlightenment.  He  is 
frank  in  admitting  that  he  is  befogged  on  some 
points,  though  a  breeder  for  some  six  years,  and  is 
sure  that  there  are  others  who  share  his  feeling  of 
uncertainty  and  who  would  very  much  like  to  have 
a  few  questions  settled. 

*'To  begin  with,  what  is  the  proper  type  of  dog 
for  the  field  •  And  is  the  proper  field  dog  a  winner 
on  the  bencli :  Be  the  former  question  we  have 
'Zim's'  remarks  in  the  course  of  which,  as  I  remem- 
ber, he  says  that  the  clean  shouldered,  racily  built 
dog  is  not  always  the  fastest  afield,  but  often  plays 
second  to  his  more  stocky  companion,  who  is  his 
superior  in  head  work,  although  nothing  near  his 
equal  in  speed  when  not  on  a  trail. 

"Of  course,  we  can  all  see  that  and  have  often 
noted  it  in  the  field,  but  give  the  clean-built  dog 
equal  working  qualities  to  the  hea\y  one  and  where 
is  the  comparison-  Speed  seems  to  be  the  chief 
object  to  be  attained  and  that  being  the  case,  why 


216  Forty  Years  Beagling 

is  not  the  dog  built  for  it  the  proper  type  to  breed 
for?  In  other  words  a  miniature  foxhound?  As 
I  understand  it,  the  beagle  standard  calls  for  fox- 
hound type.  If  this  is  wrong  as  some  men  seem 
to  think  and  as  the  winning  type  of  show  beagle 
seems  to  indicate,  then  the  sooner  the  standard  is 
changed  to  fit  present  conditions,  the  better.  How 
is  the  'beginner'  to  know  where  he  is  at? 

"In  G.  M.  W.'s  'Advice  to  a  Beginner,'  I  note 
that  the  said  'beginner'  will  find,  contrary  to  gen- 
eral opinion,  that  there  is  very  little  difference  in 
the  type  of  the  best  bench  and  working  hounds.' 
Without  wishing  to  dispute  G.  M.  W.,  I  would 
like  to  have  him  name  a  few  of  the  bench  champions 
who  are  also  champions  in  the  field. 

"I  have  never  heard  but  one  dog  who  enjoyed 
the  double  honor,  and  he  was,  as  I  remember,  not 
by  any  means  of  the  type  that  is  winning  on  the 
bench  today.  I  confess  that  I  have  never  seen 
many  of  the  field  winners,  but  I  am  told  by  one  who 
has  been  a  many  time  attendant  at  the  trials  that 
the  best  dogs  he  saw  run  were  the  foxhound  type. 
And  why  should  they  not  be?  For  the  work  for 
which  he  is  intended,  is  not  the  foxhound  the  ideal 
type?  And  his  work  being  so  similar,  why  should 
not  the  beagle  be  what  the  foxhound  is?  Is  it  pos- 
sible that  the  long,  heavy-bodied  dogs,  with  their 


Advice  to  a  Beginner  217 

heavy  coat,  heavy  and  often  crooked  legs,  that  are 
winning  on  the  bench,  are  superior  in  any  way  to 
the  foxhound  type  of  beagle?  If  so,  I  cannot  see  it. 
Of  what  advantage  is  an  extremely  heavy  coat?  To 
keep  out  the  weather,  I  am  told.  But  does  it  do  it? 
It  may  take  a  little  longer  to  wet  through  than  does 
a  shorter  coat,  but  when  it  does  get  wet  it  is,  to  my 
mind,  just  so  much  more  sogginess  to  lug  around, 
and  the  heavy  bone!  Where  is  the  advantage  in  it? 
Has  the  dog  possessing  it  more  endurance  than  the 
dog  with  what  would  appear  to  be  about  enough? 
I  don't  believe  he  has.  On  the  contrary,  I  believe 
he  is  carrying  just  so  much  useless  material. 

"Now,  as  to  the  change  in  the  type  of  beagle  that 
is  winning  on  the  bench.  As  near  as  I  can  make 
out  it  is  simply  a  case  of  appointing  judges  who 
favor  that  type.  A  large  proportion  of  the  earlier 
importations,  I  understand,  were  drafts  from 
English  packs,  and  were  purchased  at  one  pound 
sterling  per  couple.  Doubtless  this  accounts  for  so 
much  'breeding  unknown'  for  it  is  quite  reasonable 
to  suppose  that  no  very  extensive  pedigree  would 
be  thrown  in  with  a  two  dollar  and  a  half  dog.  It 
naturally  seems  odd  to  the  'beginner'  that  dogs  dis- 
carded by  our  English  cousins,  dumped  for  a  song 
are  good  enough  to  win  over  here.  I  may  be  mis- 
informed on  this  point  but  doubt  very  much  if  I 


218  Forty  Years  Beagling 

am,  as  my  information  came  pretty  straight.  At 
any  rate  I  recall  very  few  who  were  ever  heard  of 
in  England.  I  see  that  Mr.  Peters  has  imported 
some  champions  and  it  strikes  me  that  if  we  are  to 
breed  for  the  English  type,  these  dogs  as  showing 
what  is  winning  on  the  other  side  will  do  a  vast 
amount  of  good. 

"I  hardly  expect  to  see  them  look  like  some  of 
the  last  Boston  Show  winners.  I  refer  particularly 
to  the  one  who  was  winner  of  three  or  four  firsts. 
His  front  legs  were  so  bowed  that  it  would  hardly 
be  exaggerating  to  call  him  deformed.  How  a  dog 
of  this  kind  can  win,  and  good,  well-formed  dogs 
be  passed  (as  they  often  have  been)  simply  because 
they  were  'fat,'  surpasses  the  understanding  of  at 
least  this  'beginner.' 

"Another  thing  that  has  often  struck  me  as  being 
odd  is  that  judges  allow  so  much  'handling'  in  the 
ring.  It  is  really  often  ludicrous  to  see  a  beagle 
lifted  up  by  the  chin,  then  the  tail,  ears,  ditto,  etc., 
etc.,  too  numerous  to  mention.  I  see  that  in  a 
recent  issue,  one  of  your  correspondents  noted  an 
absence  of  this  sort  of  thing  at  Enghsh  shows.  If 
we  are  following  their  tj^pe  of  dog,  let  us  follow 
their  methods  of  showing  him.  If  this  dog  won't 
'show,'  leave  him  at  home.  To  my  mind  the  judge 
is  the  one  to  'handle,'  and  I  hope  to  some  day  see 


Advice  to  a  Beginner  219 

one  officiating  whose  first  instructions  to  those  en- 
tering the  ring  will  be  'hands  off  your  dogs,  gentle- 
men.' " 

"G.  M.  F."  then  comes  back  with  some  retorts 
com'teous  in  trying  to  make  some  of  the  points 
clear  that  jDuzzled  "C.  F.  H."  in  regard  to  the 
proper  type  of  beagle  that  would  not  only  win  on 
the  bench  but  in  the  field  trials,  by  saying:  "If  one 
had  a  hound  which  exactly  filled  the  requirements 
of  the  present  standard  of  the  National  Beagle 
Club  of  America,  can  any  unprejudiced  person  say 
that  such  a  hound  w^ould  not  be  fitted  to  w^in  at  our 
field  trials  and  at  our  shows?  He  might  not,  it  is 
true,  win  at  either,  but  the  point  I  make  is  this: 
w^ould  he  not  be  best  fitted  to  do  so? 

"The  gentlemen  on  the  committee  who  formed 
the  standard  had  the  ideal  beagle  in  mind,  and  it 
explained  to  the  best  of  their  ability  what  they  con- 
sidered the  requirements  to  be.  They  sum  up  as 
follows:  'General  appearance  a  miniature  fox- 
hound (meaning  our  English  foxhound,  not  an 
American),  solid  and  big  for  his  inches,  with  the 
wear-and-tear  look  of  the  dog  that  can  last  in  the 
chase  and  follow  his  quarry  to  the  death.'  So  much 
for  the  standard,  which  could  not  be  expected  to 
and  never  has  pleased  those  who  for  years  had  been 
breeding  an  entirely  different  type  of  dog. 


220  Forty  Years  Beagling 

*'But  to  continue,  'C.  F.  H.'  asks  me  to  name  a 
few  double  champions.  I  never  claimed  that  there 
were  such,  old  champion  Frank  Forest  being,  I 
believe,  the  only  one  who  has  ever  held  the  double 
title.  He  was  a  fine  type  of  hound  and  could,  if 
alive  and  at  his  best,  compete  today  on  even  terms 
with  the  best  of  our  imported  hounds,  for  the  reason 
that  he  would  not  differ  from  them  in  general  ap- 
pearance. However,  among  tho^e  English-bred 
hounds  who,  while  as  not  yet  champions,  have  made 
a  creditable  showing  on  the  bench  and  in  the  field 
may  be  mentioned.  Imp.  Ch.  Truman;  Imp. 
Leader  3rd;  Imp.  Florist;  Imp.  Tyrant;  Prompter; 
Bellman;  Fearless;  Lucy  L.;  Nimrod;  Orator; 
Parsons;  and  Wharton's  Champion. 

"Further  on  in  his  article  'C.  F.  H.'  speaks  of 
the  'long  heavy-bodied  dogs,  with  their  heavy  coats, 
heavy  and  often  crooked  legs,  that  are  winning  on 
the  bench.'  This  is  puzzling,  I  confess,  to  the 
average  beagle  man.  How  is  it  that  they  win? 
They  do  indeed  win,  but  not  at  New  York,  Boston, 
or  Philadelphia,  where  generally  one  of  the  men 
on  the  official  list  of  judges  and  a  member  of  the 
National  Beagle  Club  officiates.  Does  'C.  F.  H.' 
mean  to  say  that  either  Mr.  Purinton,  Mr.  Apple- 
ton  or  Mr.  Post  favors  hounds  like  the  above?  Not 
a  bit  of  it. 


Advice  to  a  Beginner  221 

"Finally,  when  in  the  ring  I  would  certainly 
advise  turning  all  the  entries  loose  (i.e.,  without 
even  a  collar),  and  then  judge  them,  but  although 
I  have  attended  a  good  many  shows,  I  never  yet 
saw  a  'beagle  lifted  up  by  the  tail,'  etc.,  etc.  Nor 
do  I  believe  that  one  with  poor  ears,  lips,  etc.,  could 
be  made  to  win  by  simply  pulling  them  down  into 
place.  If  I  am  mistaken,  then  'C.  F.  H.'  has  solved 
a  great  problem  in  the  art  of  breeding  a  prize 
winner." 

*'C.  F.  H."  comes  back  m  rebuttal  and  closes  the 
argument  with:  "I  am  glad  to  note  'G.  M.  W.'s' 
answers  to  some  of  my  questions,  but  hope  that 
others  will  let  us  have  their  views  and  that  as  a 
result  we  will  eventually  get  matters  in  such  shape 
that  it  will  be  clearly  understood  just  what  type  of 
beagle  is  wanted  for  both  bench  and  field.  That  is 
what  I  am  after  and  nothing  else. 

"I  can  quite  readily  agree  with  'G.  M.  W.'  that 
if  one  had  a  perfect  beagle  as  described  by  the 
standard  he  ought  to  win  on  the  bench,  but  I  am 
not  alone  in  the  opinion  that  dogs  that  are  winning 
are  not  the  type  the  standard  calls  for.  From  what 
I  learn,  however,  the  best  of  the  field  winners  have 
been  nearer  that  type.  If,  when  'G.  M.  W.'  in  his 
original  article  advised  the  beginner  that  he  would 
find  little  difference  between  the  bench  and  field 


222  Forty  Years  Beagling 

winners,  he  intended  to  convey  the  impression  that 
if  one  has  a  perfect  hound  he  ought  to  win  in  both, 
then  I  stand  corrected,  but  hardly  think  I  am  open 
to  censure  for  not  so  understanding.  I  hardly  ex- 
pected that  'G.  M.  W.'  could  name  numerous 
'double  champions,'  but  if,  as  he  said,  there  was 
very  little  difference  in  the  type  of  bench  and  field 
winners,  why  should  not  they  exist  more  plenti- 
fully? The  fact  that  he  can  only  name  one  would 
seem  to  indicate  that  there  is  a  difference. 

"Now,  as  to  Ch.  Frank  Forest.  Before  accept- 
ing 'G.  M.  W.'s'  statement  that  if  alive  he  would 
not  differ  materially  from  the  imported  hounds,  I 
would  like  to  see  his  measurements  in  comparison 
with  theirs.  Besides  measurements  it  would  also 
be  well  not  to  forget  expression;  what  has  become 
of  that? 

"It  was  not  my  intention  to  mention  the  names 
of  dogs  or  judges  as  it  is  certainly  not  my  wish  to 
laud  or  run  down  either.  However,  I  will  say  that 
one  of  the  dogs  mentioned  is  the  one  I  referred  to 
as  being  bow-legged,  and  he  fitted  my  description, 
not  only  in  my  opinion,  but  in  that  of  others  at  the 
Boston  show,  who  have  handled  beagles  I  dare  say 
quite  as  long  as  'G.  M.  W.'  and  I  combined.  So 
you  see  they  do  win  in  Boston,  and  New  York  and 
Philadelphia  shows  I  pass.     I  saw  neither  show, 


Advice  to  a  Beginner  223 

and  unless  I  am  mistaken,  'G.  M.  W.'  did  not  see 
Boston,  which  I  regret.  As  I  have  not  the  pleasure 
of  Messrs.  Root  and  Purinton's  acquaintance,  I 
can  only  guess  at  what  type  they  favor.  Mr. 
Appleton  I  have  met  and  saw  him  judge  at  Boston. 
He  certainly  favors  the  English  type,  and  why 
should  he  not?  I  would  willingly  show  a  dog 
against  one  of  Mr.  Appleton's  allowing  him  to  do 
the  judging,  and  would  feel  sure  that  if  he  thought 
my  dog  was  the  better  he  would  place  it  fii'st.  But 
that  is  not  the  point.  The  beagle  is  for  field  work. 
Then  why,  when  he  is  put  upon  the  bench,  should 
he  not  be  judged  upon  his  build  for  that  work? 
True  there  are  exceptions  to  all  rules  and  the  dog 
that  is  built  for  speed  and  endurance  may  possess 
either.  Nevertheless,  as  these  qualities  are  not 
tested  in  the  show  room,  appearances  can  only  be 
considered  and  the  most  worlananlike  looking  dog 
to  my  mind  should  win. 

"If  the  English  type  hounds  that  are  winning 
on  the  bench  are  built  for  either  speed  or  endurance 
they  certainly  don't  look  it.  They  strike  me  as 
being  too  heavy  for  either.  Now  as  to  the  handling 
of  dogs  in  the  ring.  Had  'G.  M.  W.'  been  at  the 
last  Boston  show  he  would  have  seen  every  one 
of  the  moves  I  mentioned,  indulged  in.  I  am  at  a 
loss,  however,  to  understand  why  'G.  M.  W.'  should 


224  Forty  Years  Beagling 

think  I  had  solved  the  problem  of  breeding  a  win- 
ner, for  I  believe  I  characterized  such  proceed- 
ings as  ludicrous.  What  the  handlers  themselves 
thought,  'G.  M.  W.'  can  possibly  judge  better  than 
I,  for  most  of  the  pulling,  etc.,  was  worked  on  the 
English-type  dogs. 

"As  to  loosening  the  dogs  in  the  ring,  I  think  the 
suggestion  a  good  one,  provided,  of  course,  the 
class  is  not  too  large,  in  which  event  I  would  sug- 
gest loosening  the  last  four  remaining.  I  am  sorry 
that  'G.  M.  W.'  thought  it  necessary  to  wax  sar- 
castic in  his  reply  to  me  and  must  apologize  for 
doing  likewise.  As  I  have  said,  my  only  desire  is 
to  find  out  where  we  are  at,  for  it  seems  to  me  that 
the  craze  for  English  dogs  is  leading  to  mistakes 
that  will  only  have  to  be  corrected  later  and  may 
prove  harder  than  at  present  imagined." 


CHAPTER   XVI 

BEAGLE    MEASUREMENTS 

IN  May,  1901,  there  appeared  in  the  American 
Stock-Keeper  a  comment  on  the  results  at  the 
Boston  show,  which  evolved  into  a  series  of 
communications  on  not  only  measurements  but 
again  on  type.  Mr.  C.  F.  Haven  opens  the  discus- 
sion, referring  to  the  comment  on  one  of  his  hounds 
which  was  criticized  as  "clean  enough  but  a  bit  long 
over  all."  He  wrote  the  editor  and  asked  him  for 
the  proper  measui-ements  and  as  they  were  not 
forthcoming  continues  with:  "As  you  have  not 
given  them  I  assume  that  my  question  is  one  on 
which  there  is  no  authority.  At  any  rate  I  have 
failed  to  find  any,  but  I  hoped  that  you,  with  your 
wide  experience  in  matters  doggy,  would  be  able  to 
furnish  me  with  the  information  desired.  I  have 
kept  beagles  for  the  past  eight  or  nine  years,  have 
attended  quite  a  number  of  shows,  tried  hard  to 
find  out  what  the  proper  type  is,  but  in  vain. 

"No  two  judges  seem  to  have  the  same  idea,  and, 
in  fact,  the  same  judge  seems  to  have  different  ideas 
at  different  times.     There  is  a  standard  laid  down 

225 


226  Forty  Years  Beagling 

which  is  by  many  considered  conflicting,  and  which 
apparently  cuts  httle  figure  with  judges  when  plac- 
ing theii'  awards.  At  one  show  I  questioned  a 
judge  as  to  the  number  of  points  allotted  to  the  dif- 
ferent parts  of  the  dog  and  he  had  to  go  to  his 
pocket  to  find  out.  Another  party  asked  the  same 
judge  the  same  question  and  he  started  to  name  the 
points  without  consulting  the  pocket  aforesaid. 
The  result  was  that  when  he  had  gotten  about  half 
through  with  the  dog  he  had  three  points  left. 

"It  had  seemed  to  me  that  whatever  dogs  struck 
the  judge's  fancy  did  the  winning,  without  regard 
to  what  they  would  score  under  the  standard. 
With  one  judge  it  would  be  coat,  another  head, 
another  legs  and  feet,  etc.,  etc.  A  dog  with  a  very 
snipey  nose,  for  instance,  no  matter  how  good  in 
other  points,  is  in  disfavor  at  once,  with  nine  bea- 
glers  out  of  ten,  and  is,  if  shown,  generally  out  of 
it,  and  yet  muzzle  only  counts  five  points  in  the 
standard.  Then  there  is  another  clause  in  the 
standard  which  says  a  beagle  shall  be  a  miniature 
foxhound,  heavy  and  sohd  for  his  inches.  Now, 
how  can  he  be  both?  And  is  English  or  American 
foxhound  meant? 

"I  have  always  contended  that  whatever  type  is 
best  suited  for  field  work  should  win  on  bench,  but 
except  in  rare  cases  they  do  not  do  it.    The  scarcity 


Beagle  Measurements  227 

of  double  champions  seems  to  prove  it.    It  is  pretty 
generally  contended  that  bench  and  field  type  are 
the  same,  but  if  this  is  so,  why  are  classes  made  at 
our  shows   for  winners  of  field  events?     At  the 
recent  Boston  show  there  was  such  a  class,  and  I 
was  told  that  the  decision  would  be  rendered  on  the 
merits  of  the  dogs  as  fielders  as  evidenced  by  their 
looks.    Then  I  was  told  later  that  this  class  was  to 
be  judged  for  'show  type.'    I  wanted  to  find  out  if 
the  judge  considered  a  difference  existed,  and  I 
offered  a  special  for  'best  field  type  bitch.'     If  no 
difference  was  recognized.  Bangle  should  have  won 
it,  she  being  winner  of  Winners  class.    Sufiice  it  to 
say,  she  didn't.     In  offering  this  special  I  was  ac- 
cused of  laying  a  'trap.'     It  was  not  my  intention 
of  doing  anything  of  the  kind,  I  simply  wanted 
information,  if  I  could  get  it. 

"I  have  said  that  the  scarcity  of  double  cham- 
pions seemed  to  indicate  a  difference  between  bench 
and  field  type.  While  this  is  so,  I  must  not  be 
misunderstood  as  meaning  that  I  think  field-trial 
champions  are  of  necessity  the  proper  dogs  to  win 
on  bench.  Field-trial  championships  have  been  too 
easy  to  win,  and  the  endurance  which  is  a  most 
essential  point  in  the  beagle,  is  not  tested  in  win- 
ning a  championship.  Again,  speed  seems  to  form 
a  most  important  part  at  field-trial  competitions, 


228  Forty  Years  Beagling 

and  for  that  reason  one  must  enter  his  fastest  dogs, 
which  can  lead  or  appear  to  lead  most  of  the  time 
without  regard  to  how  they  do  it.  The  steady, 
careful  worker,  who  often  helps  his  more  flashy 
opponent  over  the  hard  places,  cuts  no  figure.  For 
my  own  part,  I  could  never  see  why  a  very  fast  dog 
was  an  advantage,  particularly  if  in  his  haste,  as  is 
often  the  case,  he  ran  over  the  track  30  to  50  feet 
before  finding  out  that  he  was  wrong.  However, 
if  a  combination  of  speed  and  endurance  is  wanted, 
so  be  it.  Let  the  immature  foxhound  part  of  the 
standard  remain  and  'cut  out'  the  heavy  solid  for 
his  inches  part." 

Next  comes  Mr.  C.  O.  Smith,  a  real  veteran  in 
the  game,  who  had  been  a  breeder  since  1865,  and 
backs  up  Mr.  Haven's  deductions  with  some  re- 
marks and  measurements  of  his  hounds,  as  follows ; 
*'I  think  Mr.  Haven  knows  what  he  is  talking  about 
on  the  subject  when  he  says  there  are  no  two  judges 
who  have  the  same  opinion  as  to  field  and  bench 
dogs,  and  it  is  time,  as  he  says,  to  have  a  standard 
to  fit  one  type  or  the  other.  I  have  had  beagles  as 
long  as  most  of  the  beagle  cranks,  for  the  first  one 
was  when  I  returned  from  the  war  in  1865.  I 
bought  her  at  New  York  from  a  sailor  who  brought 
her  from  England.  She  was  a  small  white,  black 
and  tan,  and  as  I  look  back  she  was  of  the  same 


Beagle  Measurements  229 

type  as  Mrs.  Giles  brought  over  and  several  she 
has  sent  to  me — what  I  call  beagles,  not  foxhounds. 

"I  took  a  tape  this  morning  and  measured  sev- 
eral of  my  dogs  bred  by  different  breeders,  and  will 
give  some  particulars  of  them.  Little  Jack,  '95, 
bred  by  F.  D.  Lord  of  England,  11  inches  at 
shoulder,  body  19  inches,  from  tip  of  nose  to  root 
of  tail,  chest  18%  inches,  weight  13  pounds. 
Brownie,  bred  by  W.  Deane,  U.  S.  A.,  12^4  inches 
high  at  shoulder,  length  of  body  20  inches,  chest  24 
inches,  weight  16  pounds.  Little  Dick,  12  inches 
at  shoulder,  body  20  inches,  chest  22l/^  inches, 
weight  16  pounds.  I  could  write  about  several 
others  in  my  kennels  and  of  others,  but,  as  all 
beagle  men  know,  I  want  all  my  beagles  small  and 
do  not  keep  any  higher  than  13  inches.  The  small 
dogs  are  what  I  want,  those  that  are  bred  from 
small  stock,  not  small  dogs  bred  from  large  ones. 
The  latter  are,  as  my  friend  Gibbs  said,  when  at 
my  house,  'wasters,'  and  as  you  know,  Mr.  Editor, 
the  first  dog  I  ever  sent  to  a  dog  show  you  judged 
him  at  the  Rhode  Island  State  Fair  and  he  won, 
and  he  was  a  beagle  of  the  best  blood — the  old 
Rowett  strain.  I  call  my  measurements  about 
right  for  the  small  dog." 

Mr.  Haven  then  comes  back  and  says  that  the 
measurements  of  his  Luke,  which  he  criticized  as 


230  Forty  Years  Beagling 

being  too  long,  was  found  upon  measurement  to  be 
31  inches  from  tip  of  nose  to  root  of  tail,  and  that 
the  judge  had,  as  many  others,  been  fooled  by  his 
appearance.  The  judge  replies  that  he  was  not 
fooled  but  that  in  comparison,  because  anything 
else  would  not  do  on  that  occasion. 

A  writer  named  "Huul"  then  comes  along  and 
assails  some  breeders,  some  importers  of  English 
beagles  and  some  men  who  were  trying  to  adopt  the 
drag  hunt,  and  some  of  the  writers  harked  in  to 
him,  all  of  whom  were  trying  to  improve  the  type 
at  that  time,  saying:  "It  would  seem  as  if  the 
beaglers  who  had  been  cold  trailing  on  the  scent 
of  trouble  for  some  time,  are  getting  closer  to  the 
game,  for  signs  are  not  wanting  of  a  revolutionary 
spirit  in  favor  of  the  true  little  beagle  hound  in  dis- 
tinction to  the  little  Peterborough  foxhound-beagle. 
Looking  back  over  the  experience  of  many  years, 
I  find  in  a  show  like  Boston  and  New  York  that 
very  much  of  the  old  beagle  character  has  been  lost, 
due  in  a  measure  to  the  'riding  element'  in  the  bea- 
glers' community,  if  I  may  use  this  term  to  dis- 
tinguish a  new  element  which  has,  through  the  in- 
fluence of  position  and  dollars,  completely  changed 
the  beagle  from  a  soft,  engaging  mild  animal  with 
a  beautiful  mellow,  deep-throated  note  of  most 
pleasing  volume,  whose  blend  on  the  damp,  dewy 


Beagle  Measurements  231 

atmosphere  of  an  early  fall  morning  was  a  deep 
entrancing  draught  of  the  elixir  of  life,  to  a  hard, 
keen  terrier  hound. 

"Many  of  these  gentlemen  in  the  game  have  been 
led  away  by  reading  about  cleanness  of  eye  and 
feet  and  hound  body,  and  'built  like  a  foxhound,' 
until  they  conceived  the  idea  that  the  men  who  loved 
a  beagle  because  it  was  a  little  hound  'all  its  own,' 
were  old  fogies,  who,  all  combined  had  not  the  up- 
to-date  green-grass  experience  of  a  sure-enough 
hunter  with  his  'tops'  in  the  stirrups. 

"No  greater  curse  to  beagle  type  in  America  was 
ever  invented  than  the  drag.  It  develops  and  en- 
courages a  speedy  hound  and  a  class  of  followers 
who  have  not  the  patience  nor  the  innate  love  of 
hound  sport  to  fully  appreciate  the  intricate  work- 
ing out  of  a  delicate  line  in  a  thick  bit  of  cover  or 
open  brake,  where  puss  has  made  a  fling. 

"If  one  likes  to  ride  to  hounds  let  him  essay  the 
manly  sport  of  following  the  foxhound  and  harrier, 
hounds  that  can  carry  him  along  and  over  a  country 
that  will  try  the  steel  that  is  in  him.  But  the  beagle 
is  a  foot  hound  and  as  such,  while  possessing  char- 
acteristics which  are  recognized  as  hound  proper- 
ties, also  demands  certain  formation  and  traits 
which  bring  him  into  closer  touch  with  man.  The 
clean  limbed,  clean  throated,  clean  shouldered,  hard 


232  Forty  Years  Beagling 

voiced  beagle  that  is  being  evolved  from  ignorance 
and  Peterborough,  is  as  different  to  the  true  beagle 
as  the  ring  of  the  old  Liberty  Bell  today  is  to  what 
it  was  before  it  cracked.  Some  of  the  beagles  of 
today  that  run  at  the  field  trials  are  neither  fish, 
flesh,  fowl  nor  even  good  red  herring,  as  the  old 
country  saying  goes.  They  are  neither  hound  nor 
beagle,  but  terrier  hounds.  I  know  it  is  heresy  to 
write  this,  but  what  does  all  the  short  yapping  and 
squealing  denote?  It  means  that  in  trying  to  make 
the  beagle  a  foxhound,  we  make  it  into  something 
that  is  foreign  to  both. 

"The  beaglers  rave  over  Bangle.  Why?  Because 
she  is  hound  built;  because  she  embodies  in  her 
small  make-up  the  presumed  points  of  a  foxhound. 
But  even  the  very  men  who  are  bringing  about  this 
change  from  the  old  sweet  type,  say  she  is  dog- 
faced,  lacks  the  softness  of  her  sex,  not  quite  beagle, 
etc.,  etc.  They  do  this  because  not  having  room  to 
find  fault  with  her  anatomy,  they  fall  back  on  the 
one  'something'  they  realize  they  have  lost  or  are 
losing— beagle  type  and  expression.  No  greater 
folly,  or  rather  wrong  to  the  true  beagle  was  ever 
perpetrated  than  the  incorporation  of  the  words 
'a  miniature  foxhound'  in  the  standard.  They  were 
inserted  by  beaglers  who  did  not  realize  their  full 
significance,  and  what  has  this  blind  leading  the 


Beagle  Measurements  233 

blind  led  to?  A  lot  of  nondescript  looking  little 
hounds  with  long  and  short  bodies,  short  ears,  clean 
throats,  and  small  terrier  eyes  and  their  concomi- 
tant— metallic  voices. 

"Like  a  miniature  foxhound  did  not  mean  that 
breeders  were  to  blindly  follow  the  foxhound  type 
to  the  utter  extinction  of  the  lovable  eye ;  the  deep 
flew;  the  'music  bag';  or  suspicion  of  dewlap,  the 
silken  textured,  folding  lengthy  ear,  that  associates 
with  the  deep  mellow  contraltos  or  the  trebles  of 
limpid  sweetness ;  of  expression  that  beams  through 
deep  brown  eyes  that  speak  love,  intelligence  and 
sweetness  of  disposition.  But  rather  does  it  refer 
merely  to  those  details  of  anatomy  which  every 
well-made  hound  must  possess  to  stand  the  work 
it  is  called  upon  to  do,  the  short  back,  strong  loin, 
hound  coat  that  sheds  the  morning  dew,  the  sloping 
shoulder,  the  round  sohd  bone,  cat  feet,  hard  pads, 
and  hound  pluck.  No  beagle  loses  in  expression 
by  the  possession  of  these  good  and  serviceable 
anatomical  features.  Neither  does  it  mean  that 
we  must  have  'rounded'  beagles,  or  that  the  slight 
dome  of  skull  must  be  flattened  out,  thus  losing, 
in  conjunction  with  the  low-set,  dehcate  ear,  that 
exquisite  refinement  of  skull  formation  to  be  seen 
in  beagles  which  still  retain  the  old  Rowett  blood 
and  the  Elmores. 


234  Forty  Years  Beagling 

"It  does  not  mean  the  speed  of  the  foxhound, 
for  the  beagle  is  a  foot  hound,  therefore  if  you 
produce  a  hound  that  a  good  healthy  man  in  fair 
condition  cannot  keep  in  sight  on  foot,  you  are 
producing  a  beagle  that  is  a  miniature  'harrier,' 
nowadays  a  term  for  anything  that  isn't  a  real  sure- 
enough  foxhound. 

"I  lay  the  present  inconsistencies  of  the  breed  to 
the  clamor  for  speed  for  which  the  field  trials  are 
responsible.  Field  trials  are  good  and  necessary, 
perhaps,  but  there  is  no  getting  around  the  fact 
that  while  they  have  not  changed  the  rabbit  they 
have  changed  the  face  of  the  beagle.  The  bugaboo 
of  the  goggle  eye  and  domed  skull,  extremes  and 
degeneracies  of  good  old  beagle  attributes,  has 
scared  breeders  too  far  in  the  other  direction.  Let 
us  hark  back  a  bit  and  preserve  some  more  beagle 
character  before  it  is  lost  to  us  forever." 

D.  E.  B.  O'Nair  harks  in  immediately  and 
backs  "Huul"  up  in  great  shape  when  he  says:  "If 
ever  there  was  a  beagle  or  a  beagler  on  the  right 
trail,  and  on  the  trail  that  for  the  last  few  years  but 
very  few  beagle  breeders  have  persistently  and 
stubbornly  followed,  it  is  yom*  correspondent 
*Huul.'  It  certainly  is  time  for  one  so  able  as  he 
to  lead  the  pack  on  the  correct  trail.  I  have  gone 
on  record  as  one  trying  to  do  what  he  could,  but 


Beagle  Measurements  235 

being  unable  to  express  myself  so  plainly  and  for- 
cibly as  he,  created  but  little  impression.  I  agree 
with  him  on  every  point  on  which  he  writes,  but 
think  I  can  see  one  more  reason  than  that  of  the 
cry  for  speed  alone  that  is  accountable  for  the  loss 
of  true  beagle  type.  It  was  the  wail  for  'bone'  that 
was  started  a  few  years  back,  and  the  ink  used  by 
our  press  and  critics,  leading  the  inexperienced  to 
believe  it  could  only  be  obtained  through  English 
dogs.  There  seems  to  be  a  magic  charm,  to  a  cer- 
tain class,  hovering  around  anything  that  is  im- 
ported, they  seem  never  to  stop  to  think  that  a 
scrub  can  be  imported  as  well  as  a  thing  of  value, 
and  that  some  of  the  beagles  that  have  been  im- 
ported are  scrubs. 

"No  man  who  loves  the  true  beagle,  and  knows 
true  beagle  type  and  character,  will  contradict  this. 
I  could  mention  specimens  I  have  seen  on  the 
bench  decorated  with  blue  ribbons,  that  were  only 
beagles  in  body;  but  they  had  'bone'  and  good 
coats,  nice  feet,  legs  and  brush,  but  forgive  us,  if  we 
ever  call  a  dog  with  such  head,  eyes,  muzzle,  face 
and  ears,  a  beagle.  Yes!  but  he  was  imported,  and 
has  'bone'  and  won  over  others  that  as  all-round 
beagles  could  smother  him,  and  for  these  very  rea- 
sons, because  imported,  the  fact  that  he  won  and  the 
reporters  or  supposed  critics,  said  he  had  'lots  of 


236  Forty  Years  Beagling 


bone'  and  was  a  good  representative  of  'the  dogs 
hover  'ome/  the  young,  inexperienced,  haphazard 
breeder  sends  his  bitch  half  way  across  the  United 
States  to  breed  to  him,  and  some  we  know  are  kick- 
ing themselves  for  doing  it. 

"I  can  make  all  the  bone  necessary,  in  fact,  as 
much  as  any  of  the  English  dogs  imported  ever  had, 
by  feeding  proper  food,  and  have  living  proof  of 
this  assertion.  Let  us  therefore  do  away  with  those 
heads  that,  taken  from  the  ear  forward,  are  the 
shape  of  a  triangle,  with  perfectly  flat  faces, 
covered  with  wrinkles,  small  terrier  eyes,  sharp 
pointed  muzzle,  no  flews,  ears  short  and  thick  and 
set  high  on  the  head,  and  give  us  a  beagle  with  a 
beagle  head  and  expression  as  well  as  body  and  bone 
of  the  sort  of  many  I  could  mention  of  days  gone 
by,  sired  by  such  dogs  as  Dorsey's  old  Lee,  Fitz- 
hugh  Lee,  Royal  Kreuger,  etc.,  and  then  we  will 
have  beagles,  that,  judged  as  beagles  should  be, 
could  beat  the  world  on  the  bench  or  in  the  field, 
when  put  to  the  real  work  of  a  beagle." 

Mr.  C.  O.  Smith  comes  back  with  the  remark  that 
"I  could  tell  of  some  of  our  oldest  beagle  men  who 
have  taken  up  breeding  big  dogs  to  keep  in  the 
fashion"  and  advocates  the  use  of  the  small  hound. 

A  short  editorial  in  the  American  Stock  Keeper 
of  May  25th,  1901,  says  that,  "If  we  had  fewer 


Beagle  Measurements  237 

paper  judges  and  more  practical  men  in  the  ring 
who  would  hew  to  the  line,  the  beagle  type  would 
soon  be  settled." 

A  letter  from  a  Virginian,  and  evidently  a  stu- 
dent of  hunting  and  field  trials  then  appears  in  re- 
gard to  different  kinds  of  hunting  country,  being 
perhaps  responsible  for  the  different  types  of 
beagles.  This  writer  signs  himself,  "Norfolk"  and 
says:  *'The  recent  articles  in  regard  to  beagle  type 
are  both  important  and  interesting  to  the  lovers  of 
this  valuable  breed.  It  seems  that  in  these  discus- 
sions which  have  been  agitated  before  now,  some  im- 
portant facts  are  overlooked  and  these  facts  are 
responsible  both  for  the  wide  difference  in  type  and 
frequently  in  the  conflicting  opinion  of  judges.  The 
matters  referred  to  are  the  kind  of  country  to  be 
hunted  and  the  kind  of  hunting  desired. 

"From  my  experience  and  the  reports  of  the  field 
trials  it  would  seem  the  short-eared,  clean-throated, 
racy  built  dog,  somewhat  on  the  order  of  a  heavily 
built  fox-terrier,  is  faster  than  the  long-eared, 
throaty  animal.  In  an  open  country  where  the 
game  is  to  be  run  down  and  caught,  or  where  drag 
hunting  is  followed,  this  racy  fox-terrier  type  will 
be  used  and  a  judge  selected  from  such  a  section 
and  accustomed  to  that  style  of  hunting,  will  be  in- 
clined to  favor  the  racy  dog  which  has  proven  the 


238  Forty  Years  Beagling 

most  satisfactory  in  his  experience.  Where  the 
undergrowth  is  thick  and  driving  is  necessarily 
slow  and  difficult  and  coursing  dogs  would  not  drive 
to  the  gun  satisfactorily,  as  then  the  question  is  not 
how  fast,  but  how  true,  under  such  conditions,  it 
seems  the  throaty,  bloodhound  type  is  the  best,  if  a 
large  bag  is  desired. 

"In  dense  undergrowth  the  dogs  cannot  be  fol- 
lowed or  assisted  when  they  overrun  the  trail,  and 
nose,  judgment  and  a  level  head,  are  absolutely 
necessary  if  the  game  is  to  be  driven  out  to  the  gun. 
Here  also  much  of  the  pleasure  of  the  hunt  is  from 
the  music  of  the  pack  and  this  still  further  recom- 
mends the  long-eared  throaty  dog  to  the  hunter  of 
such  a  section  of  country.  The  beagle  has  probably 
gained  more  friends  in  the  last  ten  years  than  any 
other  sporting  dog,  and  his  attractive  and  useful 
quahties  are  only  beginning  to  be  appreciated, 
therefore  the  confusion  in  regard  to  type  is  a  tem- 
porary misfortune  that  should  be  remedied  as  soon 
as  possible. 

"With  such  men  prominently  interested  in  the 
breed  as  Appleton,  Fiske,  Geo.  F.  Heed,  C.  Sta- 
ley  Doub,  Tallman  and  others  of  like  qualifications, 
there  is  no  reason  why  a  type  of  dog  should  not  be 
produced  that  will  clearly  prove  its  superiority  in 
all  sections  and  under  all  conditions,  and  the  writer 


Beagle  Measurements  239 

has  no  doubt  but  that  this  will  be  evolved  from  the 
two  extreme  types  mentioned." 

Mr.  H.  B.  Tallman  of  Providence,  Rhode 
Island,  has  his  say  in  reference  to  type  and  judges 
in  commenting  on  Mr.  Haven's  stand  in  the  matter, 
opening  his  remarks  with  a  quotation  from  Mr. 
Haven  as  follows:  "  'I  have  kept  beagles  for  eight 
or  nine  years,  have  attended  quite  a  number  of 
shows  and  tried  hard  to  find  out  what  beagle  type  is, 
but  in  vain.'  'No  two  judges  seem  to  have  the 
same  ideas  and,  in  fact,  the  same  judge  seems  to 
have  different  ideas  at  different  times.'  And  again, 
that  he  has  'the  variations  in  the  awards  of  judges, 
and  the  diversity  of  opinions  expressed  by  beagle 
men  to  prove  that  something  is  wrong  somewhere.' 
Such  variation  and  diversity  are  wrong.  If  he  has 
been  interested  in  beagles  for  eight  or  nine  years, 
that  is  for  a  longer  period  than  some  of  the  judges 
and  other  beagle  men  have  been. 

"The  variations  in  awards  and  diversity  of  opin- 
ion prove  that  some  of  them  have  not  yet  found  out 
what  beagle  type  is,  and  that  it  is  wrong  for  him 
to  try  and  find  out  from  their  awards  and  opinions. 
Let  him  then  form  his  own  opinion  of  beagle  type 
from  a  study  of  the  standard  and  deference  to  the 
opinions  of  the  men  who  have  had  more  experience 


240  Forty  Years  Beagling 

than  himself,  and  who  his  own  judgment  tells  him 
have  been  profited  by  their  experience. 

"If  then  he  will  keep  his  ideal  in  mind  and  breed 
consistently  to  it,  he  will  be  doing  more  than  most 
beagle  breeders  are  doing.  Many  breeders  care 
more  to  breed  for  sale  and  to  make  the  public  and, 
if  possible,  the  judges  think  that  certain  dogs  of 
their  breeding  are  right,  than  to  try  to  keep  breed- 
ing what  they  really  think  is  right,  which  accounts 
for  much  of  'the  diversity  of  opinion  expressed 
by  beagle  men.' 

"How  many  of  the  dogs  which  have  been  most 
prominent  as  winners  in  the  last  few  years  would, 
if  shown  in  a  lot  together,  show  evidence  of  having 
been  bred  to  any  one  type?  Take  Ringleader,  Pri- 
mate, Rubino  2nd,  Laughter,  Blitz,  Harker,  Pil- 
grim, Dan  D.,  and  what  two  of  them  could  be  said 
to  be  of  the  same  type,  and  at  the  same  time  possess 
a  good  combination  of  the  points  which  should  be 
looked  for  in  a  beagle  fitted  for  a  combination  of 
show  quality  and  field  work?  Any  one  of  them 
might  be  a  good  field  dog  if  he  possessed  the  neces- 
sary courage,  nose,  etc.,  but  granting  they  all  pos- 
sess these  last-named  necessary  qualities,  what  two 
of  them  possess  the  same  type  and  like  points  of 
conformation  throughout,  which  fit  them  for  ease 
of  motion  and  consequently  active  and  enduring 


Beagle  Measurements  241 

work?  Two  of  them,  and,  according  to  my  judg- 
ment, only  two  of  them,  do,  and  if  one  of  these  fails 
in  the  requisites  of  a  good  field  dog,  this  failure 
must  be  attributed  to  other  points  than  those  of 
type  or  conformation. 

"Mr.  Haven  and  others  should  not  let  consider- 
ations of  ability  for  field  work  influence  his  ideas 
of  beagle  type.  'Good  field  dogs  run  in  all  shapes,' 
but  if  dogs  of  good  beagle  type  are  bred,  they  will 
be  as  well  fitted  as  any  for  the  best  quality  of  field 
work.  If  they  are  not,  it  will  be  because  they  lack 
qualities  which  are  outside  of  any  consideration  of 
beagle  type." 

Canada's  veteran,  Hiram  Card,  of  Elora,  On- 
tario, then  comes  to  the  pack  with  his  bark  on 
measurements,  w^hich  is  very  interesting.  He  says: 
"I  see  that  Mr.  Haven  wished  to  boil  out  the  beagle 
question,  and  as  the  mess  is  already  cooking  I  will 
put  my  stick  in  the  pot,  just  to  be  accommodating. 
I  have  just  measured  my  best  show  dog  and  my  best 
field  dog  and  as  I  have  the  record  of  some  measure- 
ments of  the  same  dogs,  taken  at  different  times,  I 
will  give  you  some  figures,  merely  to  show  how  the 
old  thing  works. 

"In  the  first  place,  it  is  difficult  to  measure  a  dog 
twice  alike.  I  took  the  show  dog  first  and  measured 
him  five  times  before  I  got  two  results  to  agree. 


242  Forty  Years  Beagling 

After  I  got  him  to  stand  still  I  struck  the  same 
trouble  in  another  place.  Standing  in  natural  posi- 
tion, head  up,  with  tape  strapped  on  his  back,  head 
and  muzzle,  he  measured  nearly  three  feet  from 
nose  to  root  of  tail.  With  the  tape  alongside  be- 
tween the  same  points  he  didn't  go  much  over  a 
foot,  so  I  got  help  and  put  him  in  a  straight  line  as 
nearly  as  we  could.  In  this  way  he  gave  over  the 
back,  with  tape,  28  inches,  with  lumber  rule  26 
inches.  Alongside,  with  either  tape  or  rule  24 
inches.  Measured  in  sections,  muzzle,  skull,  neck, 
and  body  he  figured  up  27  inches.  With  stern  up 
he  showed  an  inch  less  than  with  stern  down.  The 
field  dog  gave  a  similar  class  of  results.  How 
should  they  be  measured  anyway? 

"Before  comparing  the  measurements  of  the  two 
dogs,  I  should,  perhaps,  explain  why  I  consider 
them  representative  of  their  type.  The  dog  has 
been  shown  once,  at  Toronto,  fall  show,  profes- 
sional judge,  entered  in  two  classes;  one  first  and 
one  second  prize.  Fate  was  winner  with  Talisman 
reserve,  so  you  can  spot  the  type  that  was  in  it.  The 
bitch  has  no  public  record,  but  has  been  as  well 
tried  as  any  beagle  I  know  of.  Has  hunted  three  of 
the  species  of  hare  that  inhabit  America,  not  to 
mention  the  red  fox  and  an  odd  prairie  wolf.  She 
has  been  lost,  strayed,  stolen,  lent,  and  hired  and 


Beagle  Measurements  243 

hunted  with  every  breed  known  in  Canada.  So  far 
as  I  Imow  she  has  generally  been  near  the  front  of 
the  procession  and  never  met  the  hound  that  could 
lose  her  or  quit  her.  Turned  loose  in  the  Summer 
with  a  crack  fox-hound,  she  put  him  out  of  business 
in  six  weeks,  and  had  a  fresh  one  going,  two  weeks 
after,  and  it  never  phazed  her;  she  has  stood  eight 
seasons  of  it  and  is  sound  today  [1901].  This  is 
what  I  call  a  field  beagle,  though  field,  wood, 
swamp  or  prairie  are  all  the  same  to  her.  She  has 
never  been  shown.  Too  long-bodied,  light-boned 
and  short-coated  for  the  bench;  all  the  judges  who 
have  seen  her  have  agreed  on  this.  The  dog  never 
had  much  chance  to  hunt  and  did  not  improve  the 
few  opportunities  offered  him. 

"Now  for  comparative  measurements.  Both 
dogs  gave  14  inches  at  shoulder.  In  sections  the 
dog  gave:  muzzle  2%,  skull  6^,  neck  4,  body  14-27 
inches.  Bitch,  muzzle  1%,  skull  5^,  neck  4,  body 
15-26  inches.  Girth  of  chest:  dog  21,  bitch  22 
inches.    Forearm :  dog  4%,  bitch  4^4  inches. 

*'It  is  said  figures  won't  he,  but  looking  back  over 
the  note  book  I  find  different  proportions  recorded. 
A  year  ago  the  dog  was  fat  and  stood  close  to  15 
inches  high.  Last  fall  when  he  went  to  the  show 
he  was  141/2-  Today  he  is  thin  and  marks  but  14 
inches.  The  bitch  does  not  get  so  fat  as  some  beagles 


244  Forty  Years  Beagling 

I  have,  but  today  she  is  the  fattest  I  ever  saw  her. 
I  have  5  measurements  taken  of  her  at  different 
times  and  all  say  13I/2  inches  except  one  and  that 
13.  Today  she  is  14  inches.  Length  varies  very 
little,  neither  does  girth  of  forearm,  but  gii^th  or 
chest  does.  This  explains  why  the  bitch  beats  the 
dog  an  inch  in  chest.  He  has  measured  25  inches 
and  she  has  been  down  to  20.  The  big-boned  dog 
beats  the  light-boned  bitch  but  a  ^  of  an  inch  in 
forearm  because  he  has  hunted  but  little  and  stands 
straight  and  true  in  front. 

"The  bitch  has  developed  bunches  of  muscle  on 
the  outside  of  her  legs  where  they  do  the  most  good, 
consequently  measures  well  and  looks  crooked: 
one  difference  between  the  bench  type  and  field 
type.  Another  is  the  long  body  and  short  head, 
other  differences  that  can't  be  measured  are  shown 
by  these  dogs.  The  bitch  has  the  old-time,  soft, 
dark,  full  eye  and  sweet  expression;  the  dog  has 
the  sour  face  of  the  English  foxhound.  Bitch's  coat 
is  short;  dog's  is  rough  and  long  and  thin.  The 
dog  is  clean  in  throat  and  shoulder  and  barks  on 
trail.  The  bitch  has  lots  of  throat  and  loose  skin 
and  rolls  out  her  voice  long  and  clear. 

"This  throat  and  shoulder  business  is  largely  a 
matter  of  condition.  This  bitch  loses  a  lot  of  hers 
when  hunting  and  also  loses  some  of  her  music  with 
it. 


Beagle  Measurements  245 

"I  have  no  use  for  the  'sturdy  little  hound'  that 
we  hear  so  much  about  to-day.  He  can't  lug  his  big 
bone  and  mop  coat  through  the  cedar  swamp  to  suit 
me  worth  a  cent.  I  am  not  giving  you  theory,  but 
sad  experience.  Personally  I  have  no  use  for  the 
rule  of  thumb  in  judging  dogs,  but  contribute  the 
figm-es  to  keep  the  pot  boiling." 

Mr.  John  Caswell,  Master  of  the  Round  Plain 
beagles,  of  Prides  Crossing,  Massachusetts,  then 
has  something  to  say  on  the  measurement  question, 
and  begins  by  asking  if  there  has  ever  been  a  perfect 
hound  bred?  "One  may  be  bred  for  Maryland; 
another  for  Long  Island,  and  yet  another  for 
Northern  New  York  and  Vermont.  There  are  dif- 
ferent requirements  for  each  place. 

"The  careful  worker  must  give  way  to  more 
flashy  type,  with  forward  drive,  when  hunted  on 
white  hares,  while  the  small  hounds  cannot  last  with 
the  15  inch  ones  at  the  same  game.  Now,  if  each 
master  breeds  for  the  requirements  of  his  country, 
I  fail  to  see  how  any  absolute  rule  of  measurements 
can  be  laid  down.  Every  prize  won  in  the  ring  is 
won  by  comparison;  the  best  hound  in  the  ring  at 
the  time  of  judging  should  be  first.  Should  the 
judge  fancy  one  type  more  than  another  he  natur- 
ally leans  to  that  type. 

"The  measurements  of  some  of  the  best  hounds 


246  Forty  Years  Beagling 

we  have  are  not,  as  Mr.  Haven  claims  they  should 
be,  i.e.,  twice  the  height  at  shoulder  equals  length 
from  tip  of  nose  to  root  of  tail. 

"The  standard  has  been  severely  criticised  for 
calling  for  a  miniature  foxhound.  Surely  every- 
body wants  straight  legs  with  plenty  of  bone,  well- 
sprung  ribs  and  short  coupled  loins,  stern  carried 
well  up,  etc.,  but  please  remember  that  the  standard 
calls  for  a  mild  and  gentle  expression.  Mr.  Whar- 
ton, I  notice,  calls.  Imp.  Pilgrim  one  of  our  model 
hounds.  I  wonder  how  many  of  our  breeders  and 
judges  would  go  for  this  type?  Very  few,  I  ven- 
ture to  think. 

"Again,  the  riding  contingent  of  beagles  has  been 
very  severely  criticised  for  using  the  drag.  I  won't 
say  that  anise  will  or  will  not  spoil  a  hound's  nose, 
but  I  think  a  dead  rabbit  or  rabbit  litter  will  not. 
I  recently  visited  one  of  our  most  successful  beagle 
men  both  on  the  bench  and  in  the  field,  and  saw 
several  hounds  tried  out  against  some  field  trial 
winners,  and  I  assure  you  the  'draggers'  did  not 
suffer  severely  by  comparison. 

"Mr.  Wharton  speaks  of  uniformity  of  type; 
that  is  the  one  thing  that  counts  in  a  pack.  I  should 
place  the  requirements  of  a  pack — fii'st,  similarity 
of  type;  second,  levelness  as  regards  size;  third, 
equality  of  speed.     Any  breeder  who  can  show  a 


Beagle  Measurements  247 

pack  of  seven  couple,  well  up  to  the  requirements  of 
his  country  in  all  three  of  these  particulars,  is  in- 
deed lucky.  Another  thing  that  has  hurt  the  beagle 
very  much  is  allowing  a  good  hound  to  serve  a  poor 
bitch.  I  know  it  means  stud  fees,  but  if  a  man  owns 
a  really  good  bitch  he  would  willingly  pay  more 
for  a  good  dog. 

"Also,  the  showing  of  puppies  has,  I  am  sure, 
lost  us  many,  how  many,  no  one  can  tell,  ripping 
good  hounds.  Thus  far  the  beagle  breeders  have 
been  breeding,  with  few  exceptions,  dogs  for  the 
bench,  and  have  shown  young  and  old,  large  and 
small,  in  order  to  win  on  the  bench ;  if  a  bench  win- 
ner was  good  in  the  field  so  much  the  better,  he  was 
used  in  stud  anj^way.  The  result  is  that  nearly 
every  breeder  has,  until  lately,  gone  for  the  individ- 
ual and  not  for  the  strain  of  blood.  As  soon  as 
more  attention  is  paid  to  similarity  of  type,  size,  and 
speed,  then,  and  not  until  then,  will  we  be  able  to 
equal  the  English  packs." 

The  West  then  takes  up,  through  Dr.  Arthur  H. 
Cohn,  of  Milwaukee,  Wisconsin,  the  question  "fox- 
hound type  in  the  beagle,"  and  seems  puzzled  as  to 
what  type  to  breed  for,  when  he  says  in  the  Amer- 
ican Stock  Keeper  of  June,  1901,  that  "It  seems  to 
me  that  we  are  at  present  at  a  loss  what  type  to 
breed  for.    As  some  say  one  judge  prefers  one,  an- 


248  Forty  Years  Beagling 

other  some  other  type.  My  idea  is  to  compel  judges 
to  judge  according  to  the  standard  and  not  by  what 
he  or  she  prefers.  If  the  old  standard  is  not  satis- 
factory, let  the  beagle  clubs  or  fanciers  come  to- 
gether and  draw  up  a  new  standard  which  will  suit 
the  majority  of  breeders. 

"This  kicking  about  too  much  foxhound  or  some 
other  type  has  been  going  on  for  some  time,  and  it 
is  about  time  we  came  to  some  conclusion.  Per- 
sonally I  am  opposed  to  the  foxhound  type  and 
prefer  the  beagle  with  a  pleading  expression,  etc. 
It  seems  to  me  we  shall  be  in  the  same  dilemma  as 
the  breeders  of  the  English  setters  are  in  at  the 
present  time  if  this  construing  or  misconstruing  of 
the  standard  (if  I  may  so  call  it)  keeps  on.  What 
we  want  is  a  standard  which  represents  the  ideas 
of  the  majority  of  breeders  and  see  to  it  that  we 
get  judges  according  to  said  standard  and  not  what 
they  like  best  for  type  of  beagle.  It  is  in  the  power 
of  beagle  fanciers  to  let  the  dog  show  representa- 
tives know  that  if  the  judge  is  not  acceptable  they 
will  not  show  under  such  person,  and  if  entries  are 
withheld  because  incompetent  men  were  to  judge, 
bench  show  committees  will  come  to  their  senses  and 
see  to  it  in  the  future  that  acceptable  persons  are 
appointed  to  act  as  judges  thereafter." 

Mr.  H.  Henry  Higginson,  of  South  Lincoln, 


Beagle  Measurements  249 

Massachusetts,  in  the  summer  of  1901,  comes  out  in 
an  article  in  Turf,  Field  and  Farm  and  makes  a 
comparison  of  the  English  and  American  hounds 
and  their  to  him  apparent  difference  in  type.     He 
starts  with  the  claim  that  "we  owe  a  debt  to  our 
English  cousins  for  the  introduction  of  good  blood 
into  America  during  the  past  few  years.    Of  course, 
he  goes  on  to  say,  all  beagles  are  descended  from 
imported  stock,  but  in  1896,  when  Mr.  Kernochan 
made  his  first  large  importation,  there  has  devel- 
oped a  distinct  American  type  which  is  still,  I  am 
sorry  to  say,  very  much  in  existence  today.     Grad- 
ually we  have  learned  that  the  protruding  eye,  too 
pronounced  stop,   long  body,  and  bad  front   are 
faults  which  we  cannot  afford  to  keep.    There  are 
two  very  distinct  types  of  beagle  in  this  country, 
each  has  its  supporters,  and  each  its  merits.     To 
the  first  class  belong  such  hounds  as  Imp.  Florist, 
Imp.  Furrier,  Imp.  Ch.  Fiddler,  Imp.  Ch.  Tru- 
man, Imp.  Pilgrim,  Ch.  Primate,  Challenger,  Par- 
son, etc.;  and  such  bitches  as  Imp.   Ch.  Bangle, 
Imp.  Ch.  Oronsay  Matron,  Imp.  Prudence,  Fur- 
rier's Careful,  Imp.  Welcome,  Tragedj^  and  others 
of  hke  stamp.    The  second  class  includes  Ch.  Blitz, 
Millard    R.,    Reed's   Dan   D.,    Ch.    Robino,    and 
Fashion;  and  such  bitches  as  Ch.  Lucy  L.,  Reed's 
May  R.,  and  others  of  her  stamp.    Even  these  lat- 


250  Forty  Years  Beagling 

ter  dogs  have  a  strong  tinge  of  the  English  blood  in 
them.  Many  there  are  who  deny  the  fact  that  the 
English  blood  is  good,  claiming  that  the  ears  are 
too  short,  the  eye  not  pleading  enough,  etc.  It  is 
true  of  some  of  the  ears  but  not  of  most.  Who  can 
deny  the  length  of  ear  in  Ch.  Bangle,  Ch.  Matron, 
Ch.  Fiddler,  Ch.  Truman,  or  Florist?  Who  can 
say  of  any  of  these  five  dogs  that  their  eye  is  not 
pleading?  It  is  not  a  'pop-eye,'  certainly;  but  it  has 
all  the  depth  and  sweetness  that  a  hound's  eye 
should  have. 

"And  what  dog  is  there  that  is  American  bred 
that  can  boast  the  clean  look  of  its  English  cousins? 
Look  at  the  bone  of  the  English  dogs,  their  strong, 
short-coupled  backs,  great  quarters  and  sterns,  and 
then  compare  them  with  the  long-bodied  get  of 
some  of  the  American  hounds.  Again,  where  can 
we  find  such  muzzles  as  in  the  two  best  beagles  in 
America — Ch.  Bangle  and  Ch.  Matron?  'How 
about  Dan  D?'  I  hear  some  one  say:  'Didn't  he 
win  over  Bangle  at  New  York?'  True,  he  did,  and 
many  people,  including  the  writer,  thought  the 
judge  made  a  mistake.  It  is  hard  to  find  a  fault  in 
Bangle,  or  in  Matron  in  her  best  days.  Let  us  com- 
pare them  with  two  typical  American-bred  dogs, 
Ch.  Lucy  L.  and  Dan  D.  The  American  hounds 
have   fairly  good   fronts.      The   English   hounds' 


Beagle  Measurements  251 

fronts  are  perfect.  The  English  dogs  score  again 
in  the  matter  of  feet,  and  still  again  in  hindquar- 
ters. The  coats  on  the  two  American  dogs  are  bet- 
ter, and  also  they  have  far  better  brushes.  But  this 
latter  fault  is  made  up  by  the  short,  well-set-on 
sterns  of  the  English  hounds.  Then  we  come  to 
the  heads,  and  now  the  English  hounds  stand  out 
far  beyond  the  American  ones.  All  four  dogs  have 
good  ear  age,  but  the  two  English  ones  have  far  the 
better  muzzles,  and  far  less  prominent  eyes  than  the 
two  others.  Finally  the  American  dogs  look  soft 
and  sloppy,  in  marked  contrast  to  the  workmanlike 
look  of  the  English  dogs.  Dan  D.  I  call  weak  in 
the  muzzle.  One  well-known  American  breeder,  a 
man  who  bred  beagles  before  I  was  able  to  walk, 
says  that  Dan  D.  is  perfect — 'a  typical  American 
hound.'  Many  people  think  with  him,  but  many 
against  him. 

"My  final  argument  in  favor  of  the  English 
hounds  is  the  results  of  the  bench  shows.  Compare 
the  stud  record  of  Ch.  Frank  Forrest  and  Ch. 
Harker  with  that  of  two  English  hounds.  Florist 
and  Furrier.  The  former  hounds  may  have  pro- 
duced the  field  trial  winners ;  I  know  they  have,  but 
who  can  show  such  a  record  in  the  stud  as  these  two 
hounds  have  made?  Among  Florist's  get  are  Fore- 
man, Willing,  Fury,  etc.,  and  among  Furrier's  are 


252  Forty  Years  Beagling 

Parson,  Destiny,  and  going  a  generation  lower,  Ch. 
Primate.  Take  the  bench  show  winners  of  to-day, 
the  champions  Bangle,  Oronsay,  Matron,  Primate, 
Fiddler,  Trmiian  and  Robino  2nd,  the  latter  half 
Enghsh  blood.  What  pack  can  to-day  win  over  the 
team  of  homids  shown  by  the  Windholme  Kennels? 
What  pack  could  win  over  the  Hempstead  beagles 
when  they  were  in  their  prime  ?  In  fact  what  Amer- 
ican pack  has  ever  won?  When  I  say  American- 
bred  I  mean  American  blood.  Champion  Primate, 
for  example,  I  call  English-bred,  for,  although  bred 
in  this  country,  he  is  of  the  most  direct  English  par- 
entage. I  am  an  American  and  shall  always  be, 
but  I  think  there  are  some  things  which  our  Eng- 
lish cousins  across  the  pond  do  better  than  we  do; 
and  among  others  they  produce  better  hounds,  both 
beagles  and  foxhounds.  I  remember  some  years 
ago,  Mr.  Kernochan  had  a  little  correspondence  in 
one  of  the  papers  with  a  believer  in  the  'pop-eyed' 
beagle,  who  claimed  that  Mr.  Kernochan  and  the 
English  hounds  had  done  little  good  to  beagles  in 
America.  I  think  time  has  proved  him  wrong. 
There  are  very  few  hounds  winning  on  the  bench 
today  w^ho  have  not  in  their  veins  a  very  strong 
tinge  of  Enghsh  blood,  and  most  of  them  clean 
bred." 


CHAPTER  XVII 

THE   MANAGEMENT  OF  STUD  DOGS 

IN  an  old  American  Field  appears  the  above 
headline,  and  as  we  see  so  many  champion 
beagles  advertised  at  stud  to-day,  no  matter 
whether  the  hound  is  a  good  producer  or  not,  it  oc- 
curred to  me  that  possibly  a  reproduction  of  this 
article  would  help  some  of  our  new  breeders. 

"Suppose  that  you  are  fortunate  enough  to  be 
the  possessor  of  an  excellent  dog,  of  some  particular 
breed  to  which  you  have  a  fancy.  Perhaps  he  has 
taken  many  prizes  and  is  dubbed  champion.  Re- 
member, however,  it  is  not  everyone  who  can  aspire 
to  the  honor  of  possessing  a  champion;  for  honor 
it  undoubtedly  is,  especially  if  it  be  a  dog  that  the 
owner  has  both  bred  and  reared.  If  you  are  deter- 
mined to  be  at  the  top  of  the  tree  in  any  breed — I 
do  not  care  which,  whether  pointer,  setter,  or  scotch, 
or  skye,  or  St.  Bernard  or  mastiff — you  must  make 
that  particular  breed  a  study  and  a  specialty.  You 
must  study  the  points  and  characteristics  of  that 
breed  as  recognized  by  the  best  sportsmen  and 
judges,  in  the  field,  in  the  house,  and  on  the  show 

253 


254  Forty  Years  Beagling 

bench;  and  you  must  never  so  far  forget  yourself 
as  to  swear  by  any  particular  dog.  The  dog  is  not 
living  who  may  not  or  might  not  be  beaten. 

"Almost  any  judge  will  tell  you  the  flaws  and 
defects  of  your  dog.  But  do  not  heed  what  any 
single  judge  may  tell  you,  until  it  has  been  substan- 
tiated by  the  opinions  of  others.  You  can  thus  be 
certain  about  what  you  are  doing,  and  by  breeding 
judiciously  you  will  be  able  in  a  few  generations 
to  get  rid  of  the  objectionable  points.  Do  not  be 
disheartened  and  do  not  forget  that  there  is  room 
for  dozens  of  champion  dogs  in  all  breeds,  and  that 
there  is  money  to  be  made  on  all  of  them.  But  your 
reward  is  not  merely  a  pecuniary  one,  for  you  have 
the  satisfaction  of  knowing  you  are  improving  the 
breed  of  this  country's  dogs. 

''Take  the  hypothesis  then,  that  you  are  in  the 
possession  of  a  dog  which  you  can,  without  the  fear 
of  contradiction,  dub  champion — one  whose  name 
is  very  nearly  at  the  top  of  the  poll.  I  shall  take  it 
for  granted  too,  that  in  placing  that  dog  at  stud 
you  are  actuated,  as  much  as  by  anything  else,  by 
a  sincere  desire  to  improve  the  breed  to  which  you^- 
doQ^  belongs.  Then  it  is  only  fair  and  reasonable 
that  you  should  be  remunerated  for  your  trouble 
and  pains.  But  beware  of  being  too  sanguine  o^ 
too  eager.    Your  dog  has  gotten  a  good  name,  he 


The  Management  of  Stud  Dogs        255 


is  well  known  to  the  press  and  the  fancy,  and  you 
will  receive  many  solicitations  for  his  use.  Do  not 
make  youi'  fee  too  high.  State  nothing  in  your  ad- 
vertisement in  the  slightest  way  exaggerated  or  in- 
correct, and  rather  be  under  than  over  the  mark  in 
estimating  the  merits  of  your  own  dog.  Mention 
in  the  advertisement  the  honors  he  has  taken,  and 
when  and  where,  the  champions  he  has  beaten,  and 
also  the  terms  required  for  his  services. 

"The  amount  of  fee  charged  for  the  services,  in 
stud,  of  a  champion  dog  depends  a  good  deal  upon 
the  breed  and  the  number  of  honors  he  has  gained. 
"It  is  a  good  plan,  if  you  can  manage  it,  to  have 
two  dogs  of  the  same  breed  on  stud  at  the  same 
time,  at  different  fees,  according  to  honors  and 
quality,  so  that  the  party  who  comes  to  you  for 
blood  may  choose  his  own  dog  at  his  own  price.  If 
you  have  valuable  dogs  at  stud,  never  neglect  to 
have  stud  cards.  These  are  generally  very  orna- 
mental, and  made  to  fold  like  a  portfolio,  and  have 
a  good  photograph  of  the  dog  on  one  side,  and  on 
the  other  a  printed  list  of  the  prizes  he  has  won. 
They  are  sold  at  sixpence,  one  shilling  or  are  given 
gratis. 

"It  is  a  very  common  thing  to  see  in  the  stud 
columns  of  our  sportsman's  papers  such  an  adver- 
tisement as  the  following:     'The  champion  dog 


256  Forty  Years  Beagling 

So-and-So  will  serve  a  limited  number  of  approved 
bitches,  etc'  If  you  have  a  champion  to  advertise 
at  stud,  do  not  follow  such  an  example.  Limit  the 
number  of  bitches  by  all  means,  but  in  all  honesty 
keep  out  that  word  'approved,'  for  if  you  have  a 
$25.00  check  in  your  hand,  and  the  bitch  is  there 
waiting,  I  don't  think  you  will  be  over-fastidious 
about  her  points  or  quality.  You  will  not  be  over- 
eager,  I  believe,  to  return  the  bitch  forthwith  or 
the  check  either. 

"People,  however,  will  tell  you  that  if  you  let 
your  dog  serve  bitches  who  are  not  altogether  up 
to  the  mark,  the  puppies  are  bound  to  be  bad,  and 
a  discredit  to  their  sire — spoil  his  name  in  fact.  I 
don't  believe  it,  and  as  to  the  puppies  being  bad, 
at  all  events  they  would  be  worse  if  the  bitch  had 
been  served  by  an  inferior  dog;  besides  you  must 
remember  that  the  puppies  take  more  after  the 
sire  than  the  dam.  '^'^ 

"As  soon  as  word  is  brought  to  you  that  the  bitch 
has  arrived  at  your  kennel,  go  and  examine  her,  and 
if  you  think  that  time  will  permit,  give  her  the  first 
night  to  rest  and  recover  from  the  fatigue  of  the 
j  ourney .  At  any  rate  let  her  have  food  and  water, 
and  a  good  hour's  rest,  as  well  as  a  run  in  the  yard. 
The  best  time  to  turn  the  dog  in  is  in  the  morning, 
after  the  bitch  has  had  a  breakfast  and  a  run  in  the 


The  Management  of  Stud  Dogs        257 

yard,  or  at  night,  when  all  is  quiet.  Leave  matters 
very  much  to  nature,  only  be  there  yourself  to 
watch.  Beware  of  getting  your  dog  exhausted 
from  the  unwillingness  of  the  bitch.  You  can  tell 
in  about  ten  minutes  whether  the  engagement  is 
likely  to  take  place  that  night ;  if  you  see  there  is  no 
chance,  kennel  up  at  once. 

"Some  people  will  tell  you  that  neither  during 
cohabitation  nor  soon  after  must  you  permit  the 
bitch  to  drink  water.  This  is  simply  nonsense.  I 
always  have  water  handy,  and  dog  or  bitch  may 
drink  as  much  as  it  cares  to,  and  I  have  never  seen 
any  evil  results  follow.  Never  put  your  stud  dog 
more  than  once  to  the  bitch,  unless  specially  re- 
quested to  do  so  by  the  owner ;  then  by  all  means  do 
so,  but  let  twenty-four  hours,  or  even  more  inter- 
vene between  times. 

"When  it  is  all  over,  let  the  bitch  be  kenneled  at 
once  upon  clean  dry  straw. 

"Never  on  any  consideration  lower  yourself  or 
yom-  dog  by  accepting  the  promise  of  a  puppy  or 
puppies  as  a  fee,  unless  it  is  a  very  particular  friend 
indeed.  The  rule  is,  in  business  of  this  nature,  that 
the  fee  shall  be  sent  on  the  same  day  as  the  bitch, 
and  this  rule  should  be  strictly  adhered  to.  To  save 
accident,  bitches  should  always  be  sent  in  a  crate, 
and  it  is  usual  to  keep  them  until  entirely  out  of 
season. 


258  Forty  Years  Beagling 

"If  you  possess  a  champion  dog,  take  my  advice, 
do  not  be  tempted  to  stud  him  too  much,  or  you 
may  kill  the  goose  who  lays  eggs  of  gold.  One  bitch 
a  week  is  about  as  much  as  any  dog  can  do,  to  have 
good  stock  and  retain  his  constitution.  Feed  your 
dog  very  well  when  at  stud,  and  give  him  occasion- 
ally a  light  iron  tonic,  the  phosphate  of  iron  is  as 
good  as  anything  else.  If  he  begins  to  get  thin, 
stop  his  studding  and  give  him  a  month's  rest,  tonics 
and  cod-liver  oil.  It  is  not  the  actual  studding,  per- 
haps, that  reduces  him  in  flesh,  but  dogs  are  the 
most  sensitive  of  all  animals,  and  very  often  fret 
and  worry,  and  refuse  food  during  the  time  of  the 
bitch's  visit,  and  sometimes  for  days  thereafter. 

"If  a  bitch  misses  to  a  dog,  the  fault  may  be  the 
dog's,  or  it  may  be  hers.  The  dog  at  the  time  of  the 
visit  may  have  been  a  little  out  of  sorts.  At  all 
events,  the  custom  in  a  case  of  this  sort  is,  that  the 
bitch  shall  come  free  to  the  dog  when  next  in  sea- 
son. 

"A  good  champion  dog  of  a  fashionable  breed 
is  very  valuable  property.  If,  however,  you  pos- 
sess valuable  dogs,  always  try  to  have  yourself  the 
very  best  bitches  of  the  same  breed  that  you  can 
procure.  You  will  find  it  a  very  profitable  invest- 
ment, for  you  will  have  no  difficulty  in  selling  the 
offspring  at  a  remunerative  price." 


The  Management  of  Stud  Dogs        259 


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260  Forty  Years  Beagling 

Frank  Forest  and  Charmion  Ben  were  the  only 
two  double  champions,  bench  and  field,  the  latter 
winning  five  of  his  field  trial  championship  points 
as  a  13  inch  hound.  Ringleader,  the  Windholme, 
Imported  Stoke  Place  Sapper  and  Wheatley  Tru- 
ant were  bench  show  champions.  Uncle  Sam  was 
a  field  trial  champion  as  was  Hemp  field's  Little 
Dandy.  Many  of  these  hounds  were  under  13 
inches,  among  them  being  Bannerman  III/2  inches, 
Hempfield's  Little  Dandy  12  inches,  and  Alibi 
Billy.  Reference  has  been  made  by  some  of  the 
authorities  quoted  as  to  early  measurements,  mak- 
ing it  possible  that  some  of  the  earlier  hounds 
pressed  the  15  inch  mark. 

The  dates  given  were  taken  from  old  stud  cards 
and  are  in  consequence  not  the  dates  of  whelping. 
Many  of  the  above  hounds  claimed  different  owner- 
ship in  the  course  of  the  careers,  and  in  consequence 
as  the  hound  grew  older  his  stud  fee  was  reduced. 

As  to  the  markings  of  these  dogs  they  were  of 
many  different  colors,  from  markings  in  Colonel 
Lee,  that  made  him  look  almost  like  a  coach  dog, 
to  lemon  and  white,  and  finally  to  the  black  blankets 
of  the  present  day,  which  are  so  popular. 


CHAPTER  XVIII 

PACKS 

PACKS !  What  a  misnomer  to  the  ardent  bea- 
gler  in  the  United  States,  who  knows  nothing 
of  the  Enghsh  system  of  running  and  sup- 
porting a  pack  of  beagles,  of  which  there  are  some 
thirty  odd  packs  at  present  hunting  in  England, 
most  of  which  are  supported  by  popular  subscrip- 
tion. Xo  field  trials  for  beagles  are  held  in  Eng- 
land, but  bench  shows  are  held,  and  bi-weekly  hunts 
are  held  and  the  animal  of  the  chase  is  the  hare  and 
not  the  so-called  American  cony  or  cottontail  rab- 
bit. The  first  pack  ever  hunted  in  the  United 
States  was  imported  by  the  grandfather  of  Mr. 
Louis  A.  Thebaud,  of  Morristown,  New  Jersey, 
about  fift}^  years  ago  and  was  hunted  in  the  vicinity 
of  Orange,  New  Jersey,  as  Mr.  Thebaud  has  told 
me.  Were  they  beagles  or  bassets?  Mr.  The- 
baud's  recollection  of  hunting,  as  a  boy,  with  his 
grandfather,  were  vague  as  to  the  type  of  hound 
used;  but  the  fact  is  indelibly  impressed  on  his 
memory  that  he  did  hunt  rabbits  with  his  grand- 
father, who  had  imported  a  pack  of  small  hounds 

261 


262  Forty  Years  Beagling 

from  Bordeaux,  France,  from  which  place  the 
family  had  originally  come. 

The  only  two  packs  which  have  been  hunted  in 
this  country,  as  subscription  packs,  were  the  Pied- 
mont, under  the  guidance  of  Mr.  Joseph  Thomas 
at  Middleburg,  Virginia,  who  sold  most  of  them  to 
the  Fanhall  beagles  in  1918,  and  a  pack  at  Mount 
Kisco,  New  York,  started  by  Messrs.  Harold 
Minot  and  Page,  just  previous  to  the  World  War, 
which  killed  their  effort.  Before  going  into  the 
details  of  American  packs  and  their  masters,  I  will 
not  dwell  on  the  cost  of,  and  how  to  maintain  and 
run  a  pack,  which  is  so  admirably  described  in  the 
"Trinity  Foot  Beagles."  But  I  will  say  that  due 
to  the  lack  of  knowledge,  independence  of  spirit, 
or  cost,  there  are  no  men  in  the  United  States  who 
know  how  to  care  for  and  maintain  a  pack  com- 
pared with  the  Englishmen  who  have  handled  some 
of  our  foremost  American  packs,  like  Arthur  Lit- 
tle of  the  Wheatley;  Joseph  Powel  of  the  Wolver; 
John  Dickinson  of  the  Somerset;  and  Harry  Wat- 
son of  Stoke  Place  fame,  the  breeder  of  Stoke 
Place  Sapper,  first  of  the  Belray,  next  of  the  Fair- 
field and  now  of  the  White  Oaks. 

Many  of  our  most  enthusiastic  beaglers  run  a 
two-couple  pack  at  the  various  field  trials  where 
pack  competitions  are  held,  and  of  necessity  must 


Packs  263 

be  credited  with  being  pack  men,  or  men  like  Mr. 
C.  Staley  Doub  of  Frederick,  Maryland,  who  has 
maintained  a  four-couple  pack  of  bitches  for  many, 
many  years. 

In  order  to  maintain  a  pack  of  from  eight  couples 
up  requires  the  breeding,  raising  and  training  of 
upwards  of  fifty  puppies  yearly.  The  English 
system  is  to  *'put  them  out  at  walk,"  or  lend  them 
to  farmers  to  raise,  if  this  phrase  can  be  so  inter- 
preted ;  and  they  are  returned  in  Derby  year  to  be 
broken  to  the  pack.  Mr.  J.  L.  Kernochan,  of  the 
Hempstead  Beagles  is  the  only  American  who  ever 
attempted  to  introduce  this  system  in  the  United 
States.  Unfortunately  he  died  before  the  system 
could  be  given  a  fair  trial  in  his  part  of  the  country. 

The  National  Beagle  Club  was  the  first  to  intro- 
duce pack  competitions  at  their  trials.  These  were 
held  at  Nanuet,  New  York,  in  1892.  Such  compe- 
titions were  eventually  worked  from  holding  two- 
couple  pack  stakes  to  the  two,  fom%  and  eight 
couple  pack  competitions,  which  are  now  the  fea- 
ture of  their  annual  trials. 

Pack  competitions  are  judged  differently  from 
individual  or  brace  stakes.  In  these  there  is  no 
real  competition,  each  pack  being  judged  by  its  own 
individual  work;  and  a  large  latitude  is  allowed 
from  the  keen-nosed  leader  of  the  pack,  to  those 


264  Forty  Years  Beagling 

hounds  who  fan  out  on  the  flanks  of  an  eight-couple 
pack.  To  see  a  good  close  working  pack  find  and 
drive  to  a  kill,  is  indeed  a  privilege  for  any  beagler 
to  watch. 

An  eight-couple  pack  is  usually  worked  in  the 
field  by  the  master  and  two  whips  on  foot ;  and  while 
in  competition  the  two-couple  packs  are  allowed  a 
whip  besides  the  master,  one  is  seldom  used.  Only 
once  have  I  seen  an  eight-couple  pack  hunted  from 
horseback  at  a  field  trial,  and  that  has  done  without 
the  help  of  whips  by  Arthur  Little  of  the  Wheatley, 
at  the  National  Beagle  trials  in  1920. 

In  the  following  list  of  packs  which  have  been 
hunted  as  privately  owned  packs,  competing  at  the 
National  and  other  beagle  club  trials  where  pack 
stakes  are  held,  it  is  not  my  intention  to  detract 
from  such  pack  men  as  James  MacAleer,  Dan 
Summers,  James  P.  Van  Dyke,  Frank  S.  Rader, 
George  Goodacre,  Charles  F.  Brooke,  Fred  Horns, 
Paul  Jones  and  others,  who  have  helped  to  make 
beagle  history  in  this  country,  even  if  they  have 
and  start  their  two-couple  packs  only  at  field  trials. 


Packs  265 


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266  Forty  Years  Beagling 

While  Mr.  L.  L.  Haggin  of  Kentucky  went  into 
pack  work  and  bred  and  raised  a  large  number  of 
hounds  in  his  Mt.  Brilliant  kennels,  his  life  as  a 
beagler  was  short;  and  from  the  preceding  table  it 
can  be  seen  that  at  present  there  are  in  reality  only 
five  active  packs  in  the  United  States,  namely  the 
Waldingfield,  Vernon  Place,  Reynal,  Fanhall  and 
White  Oak;  although  men  like  Mr.  E.  D.  Morgan 
maintained  for  years  a  private  pack  in  the  AVheat- 
ley  Hill  district  of  Long  Island  and  Mr.  Walter 
Jennings  has  a  small  active  pack  at  present  at 
Cold  Spring  Harbor,  and  there  is  one  maintained 
by  the  young  ladies  of  the  Foxcroft  School  at  Mid- 
dleburg,  Virginia.  These  three  packs,  however, 
have  never  gone  in  for  the  field  trials  or  bench 
shows. 


CHAPTER  XIX 

SOME  BENCH  SHOW  DATA 

ONE  of  the  abuses  in  the  past  concerned  the 
measui'ing  of  a  beagle  accurately,  and  in 
many  cases,  particularly  at  bench  shows, 
the  hounds  were  not  measui^d  at  all,  but  the  word 
of  the  entrant  owner  taken  as  true.  Since  the 
growth  of  field  trials  and  bench  shows  accompany- 
ing them,  in  the  past  decade,  more  attention  has 
been  paid  to  measurements;  and  it  can  safely  be 
said  that  now  it  is  almost  impossible  for  a  kennel 
to  "get  away"  with  an  oversized  hound.  However, 
a  hound  shown  in  derby  year  has  recently  been 
known  to  go  oversize  after  a  win  at  a  prominent 
show. 

While  in  latter  years  the  winter  bench  shows  of 
beagles  have  shown  a  decreasing  number  of  entries, 
those  given  in  connection  with  field  trials  have 
shown  a  corresponding  increase  in  numbers,  while 
those  entries  at  the  winter  shows  are  generally  ab- 
sent. There  are  varying  reasons  given  for  this, 
which  will  not  be  gone  into,  or  discussed  any  more 
than  in  the  author's  opinion,  with  whom  many  bea- 

267 


268  Forty  Years  Beagling 

glers  agree,  that  there  is  to-day  a  difference  in  type 
between  the  so-called  bench  and  field-trial  beagles. 

The  records  show  that  since  beagles  were  intro- 
duced into  the  United  States  there  have  been  over 
two  bench-show  champions  to  one  field-trial  cham- 
pion. Of  the  former  many,  indeed,  have  never  put 
foot  down  in  a  field  trial  and  there  have  been  only 
two  double  champions,  bench  and  field  trial  com- 
bined, namely  Frank  Forest  and  Charmion  Ben, 
the  latter  winning  five  of  his  first  points  toward  a 
field  champion  as  a  thirteen-inch  hound,  and  all 
subsequent  wins  being  as  a  fifteen-inch  hound.  In 
using  the  word  type,  as  differentiating  a  field- 
trial  winner  from  a  bench  winner  the  word  type 
perhaps  is  a  misnomer;  yet  what  better  word  can  be 
found?  It  would  seem  as  if  there  were  a  difference 
between  the  hound  that  wins  on  the  bench  and  the 
one  that  wdns  in  the  field,  just  as  much  as  there  is 
difference  between  the  thoroughbred  and  a  grade 
cow,  the  thoroughbred  and  the  grade  hog  and  the 
horse  that  is  not  clean  bred;  yet  many  are  so  blind 
that  they  can  not  see  this  difference.     And  why? 

What  field-trial  man  showing  a  beagle  at  a  bench 
show  held  in  connection  with  a  set  of  field  trials 
would  think  of  preparing  his  beagle  solely  for  the 
bench,  singeing  the  hairs  off  his  belly  for  better  ap- 
pearance, puUing  the  hairs  of  his  tail  to  get  a  better 


Some  Bench  Show  Data  269 

point,  filing  his  claws  to  give  the  appearance  of 
field  work  or  road  work,  and  keeping  him  heavy  in 
flesh,  which  would  detract  from  his  field  ability? 
Yet  these  are  tricks  of  the  game  that  are  used  in 
connection  with  the  winter  shows.  Now  it  must  be 
understood  that  it  is  not  the  intention  to  detract 
from  the  bench  show  and  what  these  shows  have 
done  to  better  the  type  of  beagle  in  the  last  twenty- 
five  years ;  but  it  must  be  understood  of  course  that 
the  beagle  is  essentially,  first  and  foremost,  a  hunt- 
ing dog,  and  for  this  reason  can  not  be  compared 
with  some  of  the  other  breeds  so  prominently  shown 
on  the  bench. 

Referring  to  the  measurement  of  the  beagle, 
there  are  two  methods  employed,  one  in  the  east  as 
adopted  by  the  National  Beagle  Club,  which  uses 
a  "T''  form  of  steel  upright  which  is  placed  over 
the  shoulders  of  the  hound  at  the  bone,  fastened, 
and  then  the  distance  measured  from  the  bottom  of 
the  upright  to  the  cross  arm  with  a  steel  foot  rule ; 
and  that  adopted  by  the  Western  Beagle  Club, 
which  is  a  folding  wooden  "U"  shaped  measure 
which  is  fixed  at  the  thirteen  or  fifteen  inch  scale 
of  size  or  height  and  the  hound  then  measured 
under  it.  Both  systems  have  their  advocates,  but  it 
would  seem  as  if  it  were  possible  to  push  a  hound 
under  a  fixed  measure,  which  is  impossible  with  the 


270  Forty  Years  Beagling 

measure  adopted  by  the  National  Club,  of  which 
though  easily  made,  there  are  only  a  small  number 
in  existence. 

The  folding  measure  is  a  clever  contrivance  pat- 
ented by  a  mid-western  beagler,  and  is  really  valu- 
able in  that  any  beagler  should  have  one,  in  order 
to  get  within  a  very  close  measurement  of  his 
hounds  before  taking  them  to  trials  or  bench  shows, 
and  have  them  measure  out  of  the  class.  Yet  it  is 
possible  for  an  upstanding  high-withered  hound 
to  be  so  near  the  limit  of  his  class,  that,  after  being 
taken  out  of  his  crate  or  kennel  he  will  go  oversize, 
while  after  an  hour's  hard  run  he  can  be  put  down 
again  under  the  judges  and  measured  in. 

Many  a  beagle  has  been  sold  for  a  thirteen-inch 
hound  to  the  novice  or  unitiated  that  went  well  over 
this  measurement,  and  the  same  can  be  said  of 
fifteen-inch  hounds ;  yet  in  the  former  case  the  pur- 
chaser is  in  a  measure  protected  by  the  fact  that  if 
he  buys  a  thirteen-inch  hound  and  it  goes  over  this 
mark,  it  is  not  likely  to  go  over  the  limit  of  fifteen 
inches,  while  in  the  latter  case  his  hound  is  useless 
except  for  hunting  purposes,  as  in  the  United 
States  fifteen  inches  are  the  limit  of  size  of  a  bea- 
gle for  competitive  purposes. 

There  is  no  sport  in  which  there  are  fewer  men 
of  disrepute ;  and  a  beagle  bought  from  any  reput- 


Some  Bench  Show  Data  271 

able  breeder  of  note  will  be  just  what  he  is  claimed 
to  be  and  nothing  more. 

From  the  foregoing  the  average  beagler  who 
reads  the  sporting  press  of  the  day  can  readily  see 
that  from  the  introduction  of  the  thoroughbred  bea- 
gle to  the  United  States,  there  has  been  a  difference 
of  opinion  among  breeders  and  handlers,  as  there 
is  to-day;  and  the  author  has  taken  part  in  them 
during  the  past  few  years,  believing  that,  whether 
right  or  wrong,  from  the  viewpoint  of  the  majority, 
such  discussions  have  tended  as  they  did  in  the  past 
toward  the  betterment  of  the  breed. 

It  is  an  acloiowledged  fact  that  there  are  many 
beaglers  to-day  who  believe  that  there  is  a  differ- 
ence between  the  bench  and  field-trial  type,  as  there 
is  between  the  so-called  English  and  American 
beagle.  Again  take  the  question  of  the  imported 
English  beagle,  and  we  have  not  always  imported 
the  best ;  he  has  been  bred  at  home  for  centuries  to 
hunt  the  hare,  in  packs,  which  trait  has  naturally 
descended  to  his  progeny.  Most  beagles  in  the 
United  States  are  accustomed  to  hunt  to  the  gun, 
as  individual  hounds  on  the  rabbit  or  cony.  Is  a 
comparison  therefore  fair?  Take  the  field  trials, 
where,  as  a  rule,  as  at  the  Nationals,  so-called  in- 
dividual English  pack  hounds  are  started  in  the 
brace  stakes,  they  occasionally  win  a  place;  but 


272  Forty  Years  Beagling 

how  often?  And  it  can  be  safely  said  that  the  ma- 
jority of  handlers  dread  going  down  against  them 
as  they  feel  that  they  are  handicapped  at  the  start. 
Yet  I  have  competed  against  some  of  the  excep- 
tions and  seen  one  or  two  others  in  competition, 
who  were  magnificent  individual  field-trial  hounds. 
Is  this  assumption  a  possible  error,  due  to  the  fact 
that  the  pack  men  do  not  take  the  trouble  to  insist 
upon  their  English  kennelmen  training  for  individ- 
uality; or  is  it  because,  if  it  just  happens  that  an 
individual  hound  shows  individual  qualities  they 
are  started  in  the  brace  stakes? 

The  pack  men  for  many  years  attended  only  the 
New  England  trials  and  the  National  trials.  Very 
few  attended  the  former.  Whatever  the  fact,  many 
English  hounds  who  have  never  put  foot  down  at 
a  field  trial  are  being  extensively  and  regularly 
used  to-day  as  stud  hounds,  so  that  the  interesting 
question  remains,  are  breeders  working  along  cor- 
rect lines?  There  is  no  doubt  that  a  debt  of  grati- 
tude is  due  the  pack  men  for  their  importations 
from  time  to  time  of  beagles  from  England,  the 
earmarks  of  many  of  which  are  still  seen  in  our  best 
field  trial  hounds  of  to-day;  but  the  question  re- 
mains whether  these  English  hounds  should  be 
regularly  used  at  stud  or  only  as  an  outcross. 

Again  take  the  bench  show  type.    What  chance 


Some  Bench  Show  Data  273 

has  an  American  hound  to  win  on  the  bench  against 
the  best  English  or  imported  hovmd?  I  say  none. 
A  field  trial  hound  does  not  in  the  first  place  carry 
enough  flesh,  according  to  the  standard  to  win. 
Secondly,  the  wear  and  tear  of  hunting  and  field 
trial  work  lets  a  hound  down,  and  this  same  wear 
and  tear  must  affect  his  coat.  Now  take  the  re- 
verse and  see  how  it  works.  What  chance  has  a 
regular  bench-show  winner  against  a  good  field 
trial  hound  in  the  field?  Again  I  say  none.  Why? 
For  reasons  the  very  reverse  of  those  mentioned 
above. 


CHAPTER  XX 

JUDGES    AND    JUDGING 

WHILE  the  judging  of  bench-show  speci- 
mens has  been  alluded  to  in  previous 
chapters,  the  field-trial  end  has  not  been 
touched  upon,  and  while  different  judges  in  the  past 
have  interpreted  the  standard  of  the  beagle  differ- 
ently, as  they  saw  it,  those  qualifications  which  go  to 
make  the  ideal  field-trial  and  hunting  beagle  did  not 
have  to  enter  into  their  consideration. 

Experience  under  some  twenty-odd  different 
judges,  in  various  states  of  the  Union,  has  led  me 
to  believe  that  there  are  and  have  been  awards  to 
champion  field-trial  beagles  made,  who  were  not 
entitled  to  the  honor  at  the  time  the  awards  were 
made.  It  is  not  the  intention  to  detract  from  any 
particular  hound's  ability,  or  to  say  that  subse- 
quently he  or  she  might  or  might  not  have  become 
a  field-trial  champion,  but  I  have  seen  undeserving 
awards  made.  Why?  There  are  some  men  who 
will  never  be  able  to  see  the  difference  between  a 
truthful  hound,  one  that  carries  the  trail  honestly, 
and  one  that  is  commonly  known  as  a  liar  or  noisy 
one,  who  gives  tongue  whether  on  the  trail  or  not. 

274 


Judges  and  Judging  275 

Again  the  same  can  be  said  of  the  cutter  in,  or 
hound  that,  when  he  loses  the  scent,  waits  for  the 
true  hound  to  pick  it  up  or  find  it,  and  then  rushes 
off  into  the  lead  again. 

It  has  been  said  that  due  to  the  character  of  the 
ground  covered,  often  in  woods,  briars  or  thick 
hilly  going,  the  judge  or  judges  could  not  closely 
follow  the  brace  that  w^as  down.  All  that  can  be 
said  is  that  some  men  do  follow,  while  others  can 
and  do  not  follow,  closely.  Again  there  are  judges 
who  make  or  break  a  beagle  at  a  field  trial,  who  are 
either  too  lazy  or  too  tired  to  follow  closely  when 
judging  on  foot,  and  often  leave  or  coincide  with 
the  decision  of  their  fellow  judge  who  is  an  incom- 
petent person.  There  have  been  hounds  that  made 
theii'  final  championship  points  at  one  set  of  trials, 
to  go  down  the  following  week  under  old-time 
judges,  who  would  not  even  take  them  into  the 
second  series.  It  may  be  argued  that  that  particu- 
lar beagle  w^as  off  nose  or  sick,  or  failed  for  some 
other  reason,  but  the  results  were  there  and  seen 
by  many. 

It  would  seem  that  while  I  have  never  seen  field 
trial  grounds,  where  the  greater  part  of  the  work  of 
the  rabbit,  beagle  and  trainer  could  not  be  seen  to 
greater  advantage  if  the  judge  or  judges  were 
mounted  on  horseback,  yet  there  are  some  beaglers 


276  Forty  Years  Beagling 

who  honestly  believe,  and  do  claim,  it  can  not  be 
done;  and  I  believe  that  their  sole  reason,  for  this 
line  of  argument  is  that  they  have  never  attended 
a  set  of  field  trials  where  the  judges  were  mounted. 
Mounted  judges  can  see  more  and  further  on  horse- 
back, and  do  not  tire  the  same  as  when  they  try  to 
follow  the  braces  on  foot,  day  in  and  day  out,  often 
for  a  week  at  a  time,  and  ten  houi's  at  a  clip.  Then 
again  we  have  the  ignorant  and  novice  judge,  who 
rushes  in  where  the  oldtimer  fears  to  tread;  often 
a  man  chosen  through  club  politics,  a  good  fellow, 
one  who  has  owned  a  beagle  or  two  for  a  couple  of 
years,  and  perhaps  has  attended  but  one  or  two 
trials.  He  is  the  man  to  be  most  feared  in  making 
the  awards.  Not  that  he  is  not  honest,  not  that  he 
is  not  an  enthusiast,  but  just  simply  that  due  to  in- 
experience he  is  not  up  to  the  tricks  of  the  cony, 
the  beagle  and  possibly  some  handlers. 

A  judge  to  be  a  successful  one  should  have  sev- 
eral years'  experience  as  a  breeder,  trainer,  hunter 
and  field-trial  man  and  good  eyesight,  be  able  to 
ride  a  horse,  show  no  favoritism,  be  firm,  yet  have  a 
pleasing  manner,  which  counts  so  much  to  the  loser 
or  owner  of  the  defeated  hounds.  I  have  seen  many 
a  man  leave  the  field  after  defeat,  when  certain 
judges  explained  incidents  of  the  chase  which  the 
handler  had  not  seen,  and  almost  made  him  feel  as 


Judges  and  Judging  277 


if  he  were  the  victor  instead  of  the  vanquished.  So 
it  would  seem  that  it  is  not  the  lot  of  every  success- 
ful breeder  and  field-trial  man  to  become  a  suc- 
cessful judge,  which  is  a  thanldess  task  at  best,  even 
though  many  aspire  to  wear  the  ermine.  Judges 
as  a  rule  receive  a  daily  fee  of  five  dollars  and  their 
traveling  expenses,  though  many  serve  without 
pay.  Still,  as  the  oldtimers  like  Messrs.  Bradford 
Turpin,  Thomas  Shallcross,  James  INIcAleer,  L. 
P.  ,Cronmiller,  Peter  Metz,  Charles  Vogel  and 
Charles  Underwood  pass  out,  others  must  of  nec- 
essity take  their  places,  and  in  trying  out  new  pos- 
sibilities, the  greatest  care  should  be  exercised  in 
choosing  the  men  who  are  given  the  chance  to  act  as 
judges. 

There  is  no  sport  or  game  in  the  world,  where 
the  decisions  are  given  with  more  fairness,  and 
where  the  monetary  gain  is  less,  than  in  the  field- 
trial  game  of  beagling;  and  where  mistakes  are 
made  by  the  judges,  it  is  in  almost  all  cases  due 
solely  to  ignorance  or  refusal  to  follow  the  braces 
when  down,  or  inability  or  lack  of  desire  to  do  so. 

However,  it  might  be  said  that  in  a  large  country 
like  the  United  States,  with  field  trials  held  in  va- 
rious States  from  Texas  to  Massachusetts,  the  idea 
of  what  a  field-trial  beagle  should  be  varies  in  dif- 
ferent localities. 


CHAPTER  XXI 


COST   OF  BEAGLES 


WHILE  on  the  subject  of  stud  fees  it 
might  be  of  interest  to  those  who  do  not 
know  of  the  cost  of  purchasing,  what 
field  and  bench-show  types  bring.  Imported  dogs 
have  been  known  to  have  cost  one  hundred  guineas, 
and  upon  arrival  wxre  found  to  be  over  15  inches, 
with  no  redress  for  the  purchaser.  Again  imported 
hounds,  which  became  American  bench  champions 
and  were  fine  stud  hounds,  were  picked  up  in  Eng- 
land for  ^ve  pounds. 

Puppies  at  two  months  of  age  can  be  bought 
from  $5.00  to  $50.00,  while  derby  dogs  without  a 
record  run  from  $35.00  to  $125.00.  Champion 
Frank  Forest  is  reputed  to  have  been  sold  in  1892 
for  $900.00  to  W.  S.  Gates  of  Chagrin  Falls,  Ohio, 
later  to  be  owned  by  Mr.  Kreuder.  Bench  Cham- 
pion Stoke  Place  Sapper  was  reputed  to  have  been 
sold  by  the  Wheatley  Kennels  for  $250.00  and  re- 
sold for  $125.00,  while  Wheatley  Truant,  who  later 
made  his  bench  championship  is  reputed  to  have 

278 


Cost  of  Beagles  279 

been  sold  for  $250.00  and  a  few  weeks  later  resold 
for  $500.00. 

Beagles  with  field-trial  records  that  have  won  at 
the  National  field  trials  and  elsewhere  have  been 
purchased  for  from  $75.00  up  and  the  author  has 
seen  $350.00  refused  for  a  brood  bitch,  without  a 
field-trial  record,  yet  a  second  series  hound,  but  a 
wonderful  brood  matron. 

The  World  War,  with  its  high  cost  of  foods  and 
restrictions  for  breeding  in  England,  augmented 
the  cost  of  beagles  during  that  period  of  time,  and 
in  consequence  made  the  better  ones  so  scarce  that 
prices  became  higher,  but  as  yet  the  beagle  has  not 
reached  its  acme  of  price  as  compared  with  the  bird 
dog. 

In  1882,  Mr.  H.  F.  Schellhass  of  Brooklyn, 
New  York,  was  offering  the  beagle  Leader,  A.  K. 
C.  No.  9811,  a  white,  black  and  tan,  and  blue  mot- 
tled hound  for  sale  at  $50.00,  while  Champion 
Trailer,  A.  K.  C.  No.  6610  was  for  sale  at  that  time 
for  $150.00.  Leader  was  one  of  the  famous  Flute 
Queens  and  scored  95  points  out  of  a  possible  100 
under  Mr.  N.  Elmore  as  judge. 


CHAPTER  XXII 

KENNEL  HINTS  AND  REMEDIES 

THERE  are  a  number  of  easy  remedies 
running  through  the  sporting  papers  of 
the  old  days  which  appealed  to  the  author 
as  of  more  than  passing  value,  as  he  has  used  many 
of  them  with  success.  They  are  mentioned  here  as 
of  especial  use  to  the  man  who  does  not  know,  and 
to  the  novice.  Distemper  is  only  slightly  mentioned, 
as  the  serums  of  the  present  day  require  the  services 
of  a  veterinarian,  and  were  not  then  known. 

Skin  trouble  other  than  mange. 

Mix  powdered  sulphur  and  lard  so  that  a  paste 
is  formed  and  apply  daily.  This  is  a  good 
remedy  for  cuts  and  burns. 

Ear  canker 

A  pint  of  cider  vinegar,  to  which  is  added 
Potassium  Iodide  32  grains,  and  Iodine  crystals 
16  grains.  Apply  once  a  day  with  a  syringe  until 
cured.  It  is  often  expedient  to  wash  off  the  ears, 
where  the  discharge  has  accumulated  with  absor- 
bent cotton  soaked  in  Kondy's  solution.    As  the 

280 


Kennel  Hints  and  Remedies      281 

trouble  gets  better  twirl  a  bit  of  absorbent  cot- 
ton about  the  end  of  a  match  stick,  dip  in  the 
Iodine  solution  and  swab  out  the  ear  as  far  as 
one  can  reach  with  the  stick,  using  care  not  to 
penetrate  the  ear  drum. 

Lice, 

The  louse  is  very  prolific  and  matures  at  a  very 
early  age  and,  as  none  of  the  various  remedies 
will  destroy  the  vitality  of  the  egg,  no  matter  how 
thorough  has  been  the  war  of  extermination,  a 
day  or  two  will  see  their  ranks  full  again.  It  is 
necessary,  therefore,  in  order  to  make  a  sure  job 
of  it,  that  the  work  be  thoroughly  done  in  the  first 
place  and  thoroughly  repeated  at  least  once  a 
week,  until  *'the  last  armed  foe  expires."  Per- 
sian insect  powder,  when  rightly  used,  answers 
the  purpose  very  well,  but  as  the  powder  only 
stupefies  and  does  not  kill  the  insect,  it  is  neces- 
sary to  follow  its  application  with  the  fine  tooth 
comb,  destroying  every  captive  by  fii^e.  To  apply 
the  powder,  place  the  animal  on  a  large  sheet  of 
strong  paper,  and  with  an  insect  gun,  thoroughly 
dust  the  powder  into  every  portion  of  his  coat, 
following  this  with  a  vigorous  shampooing.  Most 
of  the  lice  will  fall  upon  the  paper.  Those  that 
remain  must  be  found  with  the  fine  tooth  comb. 


282  Forty  Years  Beagling 

Repeat  every  three  or  four  days  until  all  the 
parasites  have  disappeared. 

A  decoction  from  quassia  wood  will  also  de- 
stroy lice.  Take  two  or  three  ounces  of  the  chips 
and  tying  them  in  a  muslin  bag,  suspend  them  in 
a  pail  of  water,  stirring  occasionally.  Two  hours 
later  the  solution  is  ready.  Apply  freely  with 
plenty  of  soap  and  water,  rinsing  off  with  clean 
water. 

Strong  tobacco  water  may  be  used  in  a  similar 

manner,  although  it  is  apt  to  make  the  animal 

sick. 

Whale  oil,  freely  used  is  also  a  sure  cure.    It 

should  be  washed  off  a  few  minutes  after  use. 

Mercurial  preparations  of  all  kinds  should 
never  be  used,  as  bad  results  are  always  sure  to 
result.  Neither  can  kerosene  be  recommended 
for  the  same  reason. 

Fleas, 

Get  a  second-hand  bath-tub,  but  be  sure  to 
get  one  that  is  not  copper  lined.  Get  some  car- 
bolic sheep  dip.  Any  reputable  dip  made  by  a 
standard  manufacturer  will  do.  To  each  gallon 
of  dip  add  thirty  (30)  gallons  of  water,  and  souse 
your  dog  in  it.  Don't  be  afraid  of  its  getting  in 
his  eyes  as  it  will  only  smart  a  little  and  do  no 


Kennel  Hints  and  Remedies      283 

permanent  harm.  Keep  the  animal  in  the  bath 
for  a  couple  of  minutes,  and  see  that  the  animal 
is  thoroughly  covered  by  the  bath.  After  he  is 
taken  out  and  dried  there  will  apparently  not 
be  a  flea  on  him.  The  next  day  you  will  find 
plenty  of  fleas  on  him,  so  continue  the  bath  three 
times  a  week  for  a  fortnight  and  at  the  end  of 
that  time  you  will  not  be  able  to  find  a  flea  on 
him.  There  is  nothing  offensive  in  the  bath,  and 
the  emulsion  is  the  color  of  milk.  The  reason 
for  not  using  a  tub  with  any  copper  in  it  is  that 
the  carbolic  acid  in  the  dip  unites  with  the  metal 
and  forms  carbolate  of  copper,  a  most  deadly 
skin  irritant. 

W.  F.  Sturgill,  of  Ceredo,  West  Virginia, 
recommends  the  use  of  Little's  Soluble  Phenyle 
and  water  mixed  in  the  proportion  of  one  ounce 
of  the  former  to  one  gallon  of  water.  Wash  the 
dogs  in  the  solution. 

In  reply  to  an  inquiry  how  to  get  rid  of  fleas, 
one  magazine  says,  there  is  nothing  cheaper  or 
more  effective  than  kerosene.  Rub  it  into  the 
dog's  coat,  sprinkle  it  in  the  yards,  on  kennel 
floors,  and  the  fleas  are  bound  to  go.  Note  re- 
marks about  kerosene  above. 


284  Forty  Years  Beagling 

Egg  eating. 

Make  a  small  hole  in  the  end  of  a  hen's  egg 
and  blow  out  the  contents.  Then  fill  the  shell 
with  a  mixture  of  strong  mustard,  and  red  pep- 
per; paste  piece  of  white  paper  over  the  holes 
and  allow  the  dog  to  find  and  eat  the  egg.  Very 
few  experiences  with  such  eggs  will  be  needed 
to  cure  his  propensity. 

Worms, 

Tapeworm.  Fast  for  24  hours,  then  give  a 
grain  and  a  half  of  freshly  ground  areca  nut  to 
each  pound  the  dog  weighs,  and  follow  in  six 
hours  with  two  ounces  of  castor  oil ;  after  this  acts 
give  a  tablespoonful  of  the  hypophosphites  and 
cod-liver  oil  three  times  a  day,  for  three  or  four 
days. 

One  man  says  that  he  never  has  had  worms  in 
his  kennels  as  he  leaves  raw  carrots  about  the 
kennels  and  that  the  hounds  learn  eventually  to 
eat  them,  and  that  they  keep  his  hounds  free  of 
worms. 

There  are  many  patent  preparations  for 
worms  on  the  market  and  many  of  them  are  good, 
but  they  should  be  used  with  care,  particularly 
in  the  case  of  small  puppies. 

The  use  of  lime  water  is  suggested  for  puppies 


Kennel  Hints  and  Remedies      285 

where  bloated  bellies  are  a  sign  of  worms.  Use 
the  lime  water  either  in  the  sloppy  food  or  give 
separately. 

One  authority  warns  against  the  use  of  oil  of 
male  shield  fern,  as  it  forms  a  very  poisonous 
combination  in  the  dog's  stomach.  This  man  ad- 
vises the  use  of  Kamala  for  tape  worms,  from 
ten  to  sixty  grains  according  to  the  size  of  dog, 
combined  with  one  half  drachm  to  one  drachm  of 
fluid  extract  of  cascara  sagrada  every  morning 
on  an  empty  stomach. 

Cough  mioctures, 

A  capsule  containing  linseed  and  aniseed  is  a 
good  general  cough  medicine. 

Another  excellent  recipe  is  a  mixture  of  com- 
pound tincture  of  camphor,  one  part;  syrup  of 
red  poppies,  one  part;  oxymal  of  squills,  two 
parts.  Dose  on  the  basis  of  two  drops  of  the  mix- 
ture, for  each  pound  weight  of  the  dog,  to  be 
given  every  four  hours.  Or,  again,  a  mixture  of 
Friar's  Balsam,  one  part;  syrup  of  squills,  seven 
parts ;  given  in  same  ratio  is  excellent. 

Flies  on  ear  sores. 

Apply  a  little  oil  of  tar  on  each  ear  daily,  and 
this  will  keep  the  flies  away  and  heal  the  sores. 


286  Forty  Years  Beagling 

Sores. 

Boracic  acid  ointment  is  recommended. 

Strychnine  poisoning  antidote. 

Mother  tincture  of  belladonna  should  always 
be  carried  when  liunting  to  save  strychnine  poi- 
soning and  kept  ready  for  use  at  home.  Get  the 
green  root  of  mother  tincture  at  any  drug  store, 
and  if  the  dog  has  had  but  one  spasm,  pour  ten 
to  fifteen  drops  down  his  throat,  and  it  will  anti- 
dote the  poison;  if  not  repeat  in  fifteen  minutes, 
and  again  until  the  dog  is  saved.  If  the  dog  has 
had  the  poison  down  long  enough  to  cause  pa- 
rah^sis  and  is  unable  to  swallow,  a  syringe  can  be 
used  per  rectum — twenty  to  thirty  drops;  and 
seldom  does  one  have  to  use  but  two  doses,  either 
by  mouth  or  rectum. 

Hanging  hag. 

Camphorated  oil  rubbed  in  morning  and  night 
will  cause  a  cure. 

Ma7ige. 

One  man  says  to  take  olive  oil  eight  ounces, 
glycerin  eight  ounces,  oil  of  tar  four  ounces, 
sulphur  four  ounces.  Mix  and  apply  the  mix- 
ture to  the  affected  parts  every  day  for  one 
week;  then  wash  and  repeat  for  another  week. 


Kennel  Hints  and  Remedies      287 


Another  breeder  says  that  mange  can  not  be 
cured  by  outward  preparations  alone  and  sug- 
gests the  use  of  sulphur  and  magnesia  being 
given  internally  and  all  heating  foods  avoided. 

Distemper. 

With  the  latter-day  advent  of  serums  for  pre- 
vention and  cure,  little  can  be  said  in  this  respect 
to  this  dread  disease  in  one's  kennels,  but  what 
follows  from  the  Ameiican  Stock-Keeper  in 
July,  1899,  is  of  more  than  passing  notice  to  the 
uninitiated  as  well  as  those  who  have  had  kennels 
for  a  long  time.  "In  making  some  remarks  on 
distemper,  we  should  like  to  point  out  how  neces- 
sary it  is,  before  jumping  to  the  conclusion  that 
a  dog  has  got  it,  to  carefully  notice  whether  the 
symptoms  his  case  presents  are  those  which  dis- 
tinctively point  to  distemper.  Often  when  a  dog 
has  nothing  more  than  a  slight  cold,  his  owner 
begins  to  treat  him  for  distemper;  prompt  action 
is  always  to  be  commended,  but  there  should  be 
some  evidence  to  go  upon,  and  the  mere  fact  of 
a  dog  having  a  cold,  or  discharge  from  the  nos- 
trils, is  not  of  itself  enough  to  indicate  dis- 
temper. 

"What  then  are  the  symptoms  of  distemper? 
Well,  in  the  first  place  the  animal  shows  evi- 


288  Forty  Years  Beagling 

dent  signs  of  not  being  up  to  the  mark.  He  is 
listless  and  dull  about  the  ej^es,  he  is  inclined 
to  shiver  now  and  again,  yet  seems  hot  and 
thirsty;  has  no  appetite  for  solids;  and  loses 
flesh  rapidly  (which  latter  is  an  important  sign, 
clearly  indicating  something  serious).  Some- 
times there  is,  and  sometimes  there  is  not,  a 
cough,  but  usually  there  is  a  more  or  less  severe 
attack  of  catarrh.  As  the  disease  progresses, 
various  symptoms  present  themselves,  accord- 
ing to  the  locality  of  the  disease,  which  usually 
affects  one  part  of  the  body  more  severely,  al- 
though there  are  plenty  of  cases  which  seem  to 
present  all  the  comphcations  known.  An  attack 
of  diarrhoea,  or  alternate  purging  and  consti- 
pation, point  to  what  is  known  as  'bowel'  dis- 
temper; a  fit  is  a  sign  that  the  brain  is  the  chief 
organ  affected;  an  attack  of  quick,  short  breath- 
ing shows  the  lungs  to  be  affected;  obviously 
each  of  these  different  phases  needs  different 
treatment,  and  the  main  thing  to  be  done  when 
several  are  present  is  to  determine  which  to 
treat  first,  as  being  most  serious. 

"The  symptoms  which  are  most  dangerous, 
and  as  such  need  earliest  attention,  are  fits, 
kidney  trouble  and  difficulty  of  breathing — each 
one  of  which  indicates  inflammation — the  brains, 


Kennel  Hints  and  Remedies      289 

kidneys,  and  lungs  respectively  being  attacked 
seriously.  On  the  other  hand  the  most  favorable 
symptom  is  an  eruption;  as  a  rule  this  is  looked 
upon  as  a  bad  sign,  and  gigantic  efforts  are 
made  to  suppress  it.  But  this  is  an  error;  the 
eruption  acting  beneficially  by  unloading  the 
blood  of  the  impurities  with  which  it  is  charged, 
and  it  is  only  advisable  to  apply  to  the  skin 
some  simple  lotion,  such  as  warm  water  con- 
taining a  grain  or  two  of  permanganate  of 
potash.  This  should  be  sponged  on  as  often  as 
is  necessary  to  keep  the  skin  clear  of  any  dis- 
charge. It  is  a  curious  coincidence — well,  per- 
haps not  curious,  in  view  of  the  explanation 
above — that  very  few  cases  of  distemper  accom- 
panied by  a  skin  eruption  are  followed  by  the 
much-dreaded  'chorea' — a  paralysis  of  the  limbs, 
from  which  recovery  is  very  difficult,  and  in 
many  cases  quite  hopeless. 

"Lines  on  diet,  and  on  the  'after-results'  of 
distemper  may  be  useful.  A  little  ordinary 
common-sense  should  determine  the  former;  no 
hard  and  fast  line  can  be  drawn — so  much 
depends  upon  details.  The  food  must  be  very 
light — not  calculated  to  increase  feverishness, 
nor  to  cause  constipation,  nor  ever  to  be  diffi- 
cult  of   digestion.     Boiled    milk,   with    a   little 


290  Forty  Years  Beagling 

oatmeal,  beef-tea  or  mutton  broth,  eggs  and  port 
wine  with  milk  and  a  little  extract  of  malt. 
The  patient  will  need  to  have  a  little  at  a  time, 
and  that  little  often.  If  dysentery  supervene, 
arrowroot  or  corn-flour  must  be  given,  with 
milk,  and  a  little  port  wine  or  brandy  may  be 
added  to  that.  In  many  cases  there  occurs  the 
most  extreme  weakness,  and  the  greatest  care  is 
necessary;  in  fact,  in  some  instances  only  the 
most  attentive  nursing  will  pull  the  sufferer 
through.  Should  an  aperient  medicine  be 
needed  during  a  critical  period,  it  may  be  here 
mentioned  that  a  little  olive  oil  is  best,  particu- 
larly for  small  delicate  dogs."  [And  the  author 
adds  for  large  ones  too,  given  early  in  the 
morning.] 

Mr.  Pearce  Barnes,  of  the  University  Club,  New 
York,  and  one  of  the  oldest  and  best  quail  shots  in 
the  United  States,  told  me  that  a  native  had  saved 
his  English  setter  from  the  last  stages  of  distemper 
in  the  fall  of  1920.  While  the  remedy  is  a  severe 
one,  it  was  only  allowed  trial  after  the  dog  had  been 
given  up  by  the  local  veterinarian. 

The  dog  contracted  distemper  while  en  route 
from  Atlanta,  Georgia,  to  Huntington,  West 
Virginia,  a  trip  that  took  four  and  one-half  days. 


Kennel  Hints  and  Remedies      291 


A  local  dog  celebrity  told  the  "Vet"  that  he  could 
cure  the  dog  after  he  had  pronounced  him  incurable 
and  in  the  last  stages  of  the  disease.  "Go  heat  a 
pitchfork  red  hot  and  get  it  here  as  quick  as  you 
can,"  was  all  that  was  said.  This  the  veterinarian 
did.  The  "near  vet"  then  lifted  the  skin  on  the 
head  back  of  the  eyes,  and  shoved  one  of  the  red 
hot  tynes  of  the  pitchfork  right  through  the  skin 
so  that  it  came  out  on  the  other  side.  The  dog  was 
so  far  gone  he  never  made  a  murmur. 

In  36  hours  the  dog's  nose  had  partially  cleared, 
the  eyes  were  also  partially  cleared,  and  in  two 
weeks  tim.e  the  dog  was  up,  running  around  and 
eating  three  meals  a  day. 

The  dog  in  question  was  two  and  a  half  years 
old,  large  for  the  breed  and  when  last  seen  by  the 
owner  v>^as  in  the  best  of  health.  The  country- 
man in  question  claim.s  to  have  cured  over  thirty 
dogs  in  advanced  stages  of  distemper  by  this 
method. 

The  pulse  of  the  dog,  easily  felt  on  the  internal 
aspect  of  the  thigh  close  up  to  the  groin,  should  be 
about  90  to  100  in  a  full-grown,  healthy  animal. 

The  respiratory  movements  in  health  are  about 
15  or  20. 

The  normal  temperature  of  the  dog  is  from  101 
degrees  F.,  to  102  degrees  F.     This  temperature, 


292  Forty  Years  Beagling 

which  is  about  3  degrees  higher  than  normal 
temperature  in  man,  should  not  be  mistaken  for 
fever. 

The    dog    has    important    sweat -ghmds    in    the 
feet 


I'lirough  the  courtesy  of  Messrs.  Hiram  Card, 
George  B.  Post,  James  MacAleer,  George  F.  Reed 
and  Bradford  Turpin,  I  have  been  able  to  locate 
a  ver\'  fc-v  of  the  oJd  norn  de  plumes  as  follows: 

"Rusticus"  was  Mr.  X.  Elmore. 

"Lillibulero"  was  Mr.  F.  C.  Phoebus. 

"Comedy"  was  Mr.  .J.  M.  Pulley. 

"Reicnaf"  was  Mr.  Howard  Y.  Ireland. 

"M.  H.  W."  was  Mr.  Mifflin  H.  Wharton. 

''Bradley"  was  Mr.  Bradford  Turpin. 

It  is  to  be  regretted  that  more  could  not  be  found, 
but  there  is  a  limit  to  the  old  timers  alive  at  this 
date,  and  their  memorv'  is  not  as  clear  as  it  was 
forty  \-ears  ago,  most  of  them  regretfully  admit. 


293 


INDEX 


Advice  to  beginner,  213 

"Agamak,"  13,  84 

Appleton,  James  W.,  220,  223, 

238,  265 
Arnolt,   Muss,   92 
Assherton,  William,  179,  185 
Ashburner,    W.    H.,    1,    4,   41, 

171,  259 

Bag,  hanging,  286 
Bateman,  John,  103 
Barnes,  Pearce,  290 
Belmont,   Raymond,   265 
Bench-shov/   data,   267-273 
Bond,  Frank  A.,  157,  158 
Bone,  139 

Borden,   Spencer,   9 
"Briar,"  8 
Bradley,   Mr.,   25,   39,   50,   53, 

293 
"Brockton,"  26 
Brown,  17 
Brooke,  C.  F.,  264 
Burden,   Arthur,  265 
Brooking,  0.  W.,  2 
Brood  bitch,  74-82 
Bruns,  H.  B.,  265 
Brush,   17 
Buckstaff,  89,  92,  97,  98,  100, 

102 
Byron,  19 

Card,     Hiram,    172,    176-178, 

180-183,  190-193,  241 
Cameron,  Colin,  179 
Canker  of  the  ear,  280 
Caswell,  John,  245,  265 
"Chicasaw,"   123 
Chidester,  P.  M.,  259 
Childs,  W.  H.,  54 
Challoner,  Mrs.  David,  265 


Chapman,   F.   W.,   50,   53,   99, 

167 
Clark,  W.  S.,  50,  112,  168,  171 
Clucas,  E.  W.,  265 
"C,  N.,"   7 
Cole,  Reno  B.,  259 
Cohn,  A.  H.,  247 
"Comedy,"    83,    88,    119,    180, 

189-191,  193,  198,  204,  209, 

293 
Cook,  E.  C,  153 
Cornforth,  E.  O.,  156,  157 
"Coricon,"  7 

Cost  of  beagles,  278,  279 
Cronmiller,  L.  P.,  277 
Cough  remedies,  285 
Coventry,  Earl  of,  86 

"Dalg,"  6 

Deane,  W.,  229 

Dickinson,  J.,  262 

Distemper,  287-292 

Dorsey,    Pottinger,    4,    9,    116, 

126,  179,  185,  236,  259 
Doub,  C.  Staley,  170,  238,  263 

Edwards,   William,   47 

Egg  eating,  284 

Ellis,  12 

Elmore,  N.,  42,  52,  179,  279 

Fanhall  Beagles,  261,  265 
Fanning,  G.  W.,  2nd,  265 
Featherstone,  George,  187 
Fiske,   238 

Fellows,  J.  Otis,  92,  154,  155 
"Flat,"  4 

P'orrest  Beagle   Kennels,   11 
Foxcroft  School  Beagles,  265 
Fleas,  282,  283 
Flies,  285 
295 


296 


Index 


Gates,  W.  S.,  11,  278 
Gambrill,  R.  V.  N.,  265 
Gill,  E.  T.,  265 
Glands,  292 
Goodacre,  George,  264 
Griffith,  David,  158 
"Gray,  Canada,"  95,  169 

Haggin,  L.  L.,  266 

Haven,    C.    F.,   225,   228,   230, 

239,  241 
"Hector,"  142 
Higginson,  H.  Henry,  248 
"Hibernia,"  9,  10,  13,  14,  15 
"H.,  H.,"  7,  8 

"H.,  C.  F.,"  215,  219,  220,  221 
Horns,  Fred,  259,  264 
"Huul,"  230-234 
Howard,  James,  60 

ISELIN,  C.  Oliver,  Jr.,  265 

Jamieson,  H.  v.,  133 
Jennings,  Walter,  266 
Jones,  M.,  116 
Jones,  Paul,  16,  264 
Judges  and  Judging,  119-139, 
274-277 

Kernochan,  J.  L.,  12,  175, 
203,  213,  252,  259,  263,  264 

Kimball,  F.,  44 

Kreuder,  H.  L.,  11,  92,  109, 
112,  113,  116,  128,  133,  151, 
164,  174,  178,  185,  259,  278 

Kreuger,  A.  C.,  1,  42,  259 

Laick,  George,  165 

Ledbury,  86 

Lewis,   Joseph,   102,   146,   150- 

153,  259 
Lillibulero,  4,  293 
Lice,  281 

Little,  Arthur,  262,  264 
Lord,  F.  D.,  229 
Loutre,  16 

McAleer,  James,  172,  176, 
180,  182,  189,  191,  193,  259, 
264,  277 


McGruder,  Bradley,  158 

Mange,  286 

Markham,  8 

Metz,  Peter,  277 

Milais,  Everett,  56,  62,  73 

Minot,  Harold,  261 

Mayhew,  15 

Morgan,  E.  D.,  266 

Mills,  Dr.,  58-64,  68-72,  119 

M.,  S.  P.,  21 

Namquoit,  14,  36 

National    Beagle    Club,   2,    17, 

21,  27,   41,   42,  90,   96,   116, 

128,  182,  193,  203,  204,  213, 

263 
New  England  Beagle  Club,  10, 

182,  213 
Nichols,  Gardiner,  50 
Norfolk,  237 
Nom  de  plumes,  293 
Northern   Hare  Club,  6 
Nose,  83-117 
N.,  H.  B.,  22 

Orgill,  Edmund,  161,  162 
Ossian,  7 

Packs,  261-266 
Parry,  A.,  171 
Peters,  George  R.,  170 
Peters,  H.  T.,  9,  259,  265 
Peterson,  W.  A.,  259 
Phoebus,  F.  C,  39-44 
Phipps,  J.  S.,  265 
Phipps,  H.  S.,  265 
Post,  George  B.,  220,  265 
Powell,  W.  A.,  259 
Powell,   Joseph,   262 
Poison  antidotes,  286 
Progeny,  56-73 
Pulley,  J.  M.,  172 
Pulse,  292 
Puppies,  74-82 
Purinton,  220 

QuESTER,  20-25,  35 
Quincy  House,  2 


Index 


297 


Rader,  Frank,  264 

Reed,  G.   F.,  4,   11,  35-38,  98, 

113,  139,  146,  149,  165,  168, 

170,   190,   238,   259 
Reicnaf,  S.,  10,  293 
Remedies,  280-292 
Reynal,  Eugene,  265 
Respiration,   292 
Rogers,  G.  W.,  163 
Root,  223 

Rockefeller,  W.  G.,  265 
R.,  O.  W.,  4 
Rowett,    General,    14,    42,    52, 

178 
Robinson,  F.  B.,  13 
Rusticus,   4,  293 

SCHELLHAS,  H.  F.,  279 

Sedge,  4 

Size,  39-55 

Shotta,  Charles,  116 

Shallcross,  Thomas,  16,  277 

Skin  diseases,  280 

Sloane,  4 

Smith,    C.    0.,    142,    164,    228, 

236 
Smith,  Chetwood,  16,  265 
Somerset  Beagles,  44,  204 
Sores,  286 
Speed,  83-118 
Subscriber,  204 
Summers,  D.  F.,  172,  190,  259, 

264 
Steffen,  Louis,  259 
Stoddard,  J.  F.,  105,  110,  113 
Standard,  119-127 
Staples,  Gordon,  74 
Stonehenge,  8,  184 
Stud  hounds,  253-260 


Stud  fees,  259 
Student,  21,  193 
Sturgill,  W.  F.,  283 
Styne,  E.  L.,  143 

Tallman,  H.  B.,  155,  166,  238 
Taylor,  Major,  125 
Temperature,  292 
Thebaud,  Louis  A.,  261 
Thomas,  Joseph,  262,  265 
T.,  L.  H.,  7,  8 
Toy  beagles,   154-160 
Truitt,  E.  E.,  164 
Training,   20-38,   198-203 
Turpin,  Bradford,  54,  95,  101, 

277 
Twadell,  L.  H.,  42,  51 
Type,  172-197,  204-212 

Uncas,  21,  28 

Van  Dyke,  James  P.,  264 
Vogel,   Charles  A.,  277 

Wade,  Mr.,  57,  63 

Watson,  Harry,  262 

W.,  A.  W.,  18 

Weight,   161-171 

Wharton,  G.  M.,  192,  213,  216, 

219,  221-224,  246 
Wheatley    Kennels,    260,    265, 

278 
Wiley,  Victor,  259 
Wixom,  C.  S.,  37,  163,  169,  171 
Windholme  Kennels,  9,  265 
Worms,  284 

ZiMMER,  F.  B.,  8,  54,  119,  139, 
144,  166,  215 


V'/ebster  Family  Library  of  Veterinary  Medicine 
Cummings  Schoo!  of  Veierinany  ivledicine  at 


North ., 


